thcartofthe: 
dresden- galler^ 


JULIA  deWOLF 
ADDISON 


^be  Hrt  of  tbe  Bre0^en  (3aller^ 


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Zhc  art  of  tbc  Datlcan  c 

BY   MARY    KNIGHT   POTTER  { 

XTbe  Brt  of  tbe  IPittl  palace  j 

BY  JULIA   DE  W.   ADDISON  ( 

Z\ic  "Rxt  of  tbe  Xouvre  j 

BY    MARY    KNIGHT    POTTER  i 

Z\)c  Brt  of  tbe  Denlce  Bca&emg  \ 

)            BY    MARY    KNIGHT    POTTER  j 

I  ^be  Brt  of  tbe  IFlatfonal  (Bailer^  I 

'            BY   JULIA   DE   W.    ADDISON  < 

>  ^be  Brt  of  tbe  Dresden  (Ballerg  « 

I                 BY   JULIA    DE    W.    ADDISON  | 

I                          In  Preparation  / 

\  Z\iz  Brt  Of  tbe  BetberlanOs  6al*  ] 

5      lerlcs  , 

\                  BY   ESTHER   SINGLETON  , 

\                                           ^  i 

J         L.    C.    PAGE    &   COMPANY  < 

J              Publishers,  Boston,  Mass.  { 


RAPHAEL.  —  MADONNA    DI    SAN    SISTO 


'  See  page  iS ) 


be  Hrt  of  tbc 
2)re6ben  ^ 
^     (3aller^ 


Notes  and  Observations  upon  the  Old  and 
Modern  Masters  and  Paintings  in  the  Royal 
Collection  ^  ^  ^  ,^ 


By 
Julia  de  Wolf  Addison 

Author  of   "  The  Art  of  the    Pitti  Palace,"  "  The  Art  of  the 
National  Gallery,"  "  Classic  Myths  in  Art,"  etc. 


Boston 
L.  C.  Page   &  Company 

MDCCCCVII 


Copyright,  igob 
By  L.  C.  Page  &  Company 

(incorporated) 

Entered  at  Stationers'  Hall,  London 

All  rights  reserved 


First  Impression,  November,  1906 


COLONIAL    PRESS 

Electrotyped  and  Printed  by  C.  H.  Simonds  &•  Co. 

Boitoii,   U.  S.  A. 


preface 


In  looking  through  such  parts  of  this  study  as  I 
prepared  last  summer  in  Dresden,  I  came  upon  this 
note:  In  spite'  of  the  numerous  copies  and  school 
pieces  in  this  gallery,  the  masterpieces  are  suffi- 
ciently important  to  render  it  one  of  the  most  inter- 
esting collections  in  the  world.  This  is  indeed  true, 
when  we  remember  that  Dresden  enshrines  the 
greatest  picture  of  Raphael,  a  gem  of  Van  Eyck, 
a  celebrated  Holbein,  many  examples  of  Rubens 
and  Rembrandt,  Van  Dyck's  Man  in  Armour, 
splendid  specimens  of  the  Venetians,  with  Titian's 
Tribute  Money,  the  finest  row  of  Correggios  in 
Europe,  and  innumerable  treasures  of  Flemish, 
Dutch,  and  German  art.  Among  the  Spanish  pic- 
tures, too,  is  one  of  the  finest  Murillos  outside  of 
Spain. 

And  even  the  pictures  which  must  be  classified 
as  "  studio  works,"  are  in  many  cases  most  inter- 
esting selections.  On  the  whole,  I  think  one  re- 
ceives as  much  pleasure  from  a  tour  of  this  gallery 


2075560 


vi  Ipreface 

as  from  any  other.  One  cannot  claim  that  there 
is  no  "  padding;  "  of  course  there  is  the  usual  pro- 
portion of  indifferent  work.  But  even  such  pic- 
tures seem  to  have  their  place,  if  we  agree  with 
Philip  III.  of  Spain.  One  of  the  Dukes  in  his  suite 
suggested  to  his  Majesty  that  it  would  be  well  to 
prohibit  poor  painters  from  launching  their  daubs 
upon  the  world.  "  Bear  with  them,"  replied  the 
king,  "  for  the  sake  of  their  laudable  love  for  art, 
and  also  because  a  bad  picture  pleases  some  people 
as  well  as  a  good  one."  This  is  a  little  broader 
stand  than  we  should  wish  to  recommend,  but  it 
calls  attention  to  the  important  fact  that  the  spirit 
of  the  time  determines  the  standard  of  art,  and  it 
is  unfair  to  judge  the  best  work  of  some  men  too 
harshly,  because  the  sentiment  of  their  day,  by 
which  they  were  guided,  is  different  from  the  spirit 
by  which  we  determine  the  art  standard  of  to-day. 
To  enjoy  pictures  it  is  necessary  to  develop  enough 
imagination  to  enable  us  to  enter  into  the  atmos- 
phere of  the  centuries  in  which  they  were  produced. 
Dresden  has  been  called  the  Florence  of  Ger- 
many. With  its  art-loving  princes,  its  coterie  of 
scholars  and  artists,  its  famed  crafts  and  its  noble 
Academy  and  Art  Gallery,  it  deserves  the  title  as 
well  as  any  other  Northern  capital. 


Contents 


CHAPTER  PAGE 

I.     Early  Italians  ;  Raphael  and  Correggio  i 

II.     The  Great  Venetians           .        .         .        .  43 

III.  Later  Italian  Schools         ....  73 

IV.  Spanish  Masters 100 

V.     Painters    of    the    French    and    English 

Schools 138 

VI.     Pastels  and  Miniatures,  with  Late  Ger- 
man and    Italian    Pictures   Hanging  in 

Adjoining  Rooms 163 

VII.     Early  Flemish,  Dutch,  and  German    Pic- 
tures: DiJRER  AND  Holbein      .         .         .191 
VIII.     Other   Netherlandish    and  German  Art- 
ists           225 

IX.     Rubens  and  Van  Dyck          ....  255 
X.     Rembrandt   and    Some   of   His  Contempo- 
raries      286 

XL     Dutch  Painters 307 

XII.     Modern  German  Masters     .        .        ,        .  362 

Bibliography  .......  445 

Index       ........  447 


%i&t  of  IfUustrations 


-♦ 

PAGE 


Raphael.  —  Madonna   di   San   Sisto  (see   page   i8) 

Frontispiece 

Plan  of  the  First  Floor facing  4 

Francesco  Cossa.  —  Annunciation  ....  9 
CoRREGGio.  —  Madonna  of  St.  Francis       ...       34 

Titian. — Tribute  Money 46 

GioRGioNE.  —  Sleeping  Venus         .....       54 
Tintoretto.  —  Six   Women    with    Musical   Instru- 
ments     60 

Tintoretto.  —  The  Rescue 63 

Paolo  Veronese.  —  Cuccina  Family  (Detail)   .       .       66 

GuiDO  Reni.  —  Venus  and  Cupid 86 

Caravaggio.  —  The  Cheat 90 

Salvator  Rosa.  —  Portrait  of  Himself      ...       92 

RiBERA.  —  St.  Agnes 118 

Murillo.  —  Death  of  St.  Clara  (Detail)  .  .  130 
Velasquez.  —  Portrait  of  an  Elderly  Man  .  .132 
Valdes  Leal.  —  St.  Basco  of  Portugal  .  .  .  136 
Nicolas  Poussin.  —  Pan  and  Syrinx  ....  140 
Claude  Lorrain.  —  Acis  and  Galatea        .       .       -144 

Plan  of  the  Ground  Floor facing  146 

Watteau.  —  A  Garden  Party 152 

RosALBA  Carriera.  —  Louis  XV.  (Pastel)  .  .  .  168 
LioTARD.  —  The  Chocolate  Girl 180 


X  Xist  of  iFUustrattons 

Jan  Van  Eyck.  —  Central  Panel  of  Triptych 
Albrecht  Durer.  —  The  Dresden  Altar  . 
Hans  Holbein.  —  The  Madonna  of  the  Burgomas- 
ter Meyer 

Hans  Holbein.  —  Portrait  of  Morette 

Csesar  van    Everdingen.  —  Bacchus    and    Nymphs 

Nicholas    van     Verendael.  —  Monkeys    Regaling 

Themselves 

David  Teniers.  —  Deliverance  of  St.  Peter  . 
Rubens.  —  The  Champion  of  Virtue  . 
Rubens.  —  Diana  with  Her  Nymphs  Hunting. 
Van  Dyck.  —  Portrait  of  a  Commander  in  Armour 
Rembrandt.  —  Rembrandt  and  Saskia. 
Rembrandt.  —  Sacrifice  of  Manoah  and  His  Wife 
Vermeer  of  Delft.  —  A  Girl  and  Her  Lover 
Van  der  Werff.  —  Expulsion  of  Hagar  . 
Vermeer  of  Delft.  —  Lady  Reading  a  Letter 
Ruysdael.  —  The  Monastery  .... 
Gerard  Dou.  —  Portrait  of  the  Artist  in  His  Studio 
Jan  Steen.  —  The  Marriage  Feast  at  Cana  . 
Adriaen  van  Ostade.  —  The  Artist  in  His  Studio 
Gerard  Ter  Borch.  —  A  Lady  Washing  Her  Hands 
Plan  of  the  Second  Floor  ....  jacin^ 
Theobald  von  Oer.  —  Giovanni  Bellini's  Visit  to 

the  Studio  of  Albrecht    Durer 
LuDwiG  Knaus. —  Behind  the   Scenes  . 
Munkacsy.  —  The  Crucifixion 
Franz  Defregger.  —  Mountain  Smithy 
Puvis  DE  Chavannes.  —  Fisherman's  Family 
Karl  Hoff.  —  The  Son's  Last  Greeting    . 
Arnold  Bocklin.  —  Spring's  Delights  . 
Hermann  Prell.  —  Judas    Iscariot    Bribed  by  the 
Pharisees 


PAGE 
192 

211 

216 

222 

248 
252 

264 
275 
282 
286 
292 
302 

313 
321 

327 

347 
350 
356 
366 

380 
386 

398 

402 
408 
414 
434 

440 


Hrt  of  tbe  ©resben  (3alleri2 


CHAPTER  I. 

EARLY    ITALIANS;    RAPHAEL    AND    CORREGGIO 

The  origins  of  the  German  galleries  are  inter- 
esting to  note.  The  Munich  Gallery  grew  up  from 
a  part  of  the  old  Bavarian  Collection,  absorbing  the 
Dusseldorf  Gallery,  which  was  added  about  a  cen- 
tury ago.  Flemish  and  Dutch  pictures  were  then 
purchased  to  complete  the  collection.  The  Berlin 
Gallery  was  only  brought  into  existence  in  the  nine- 
teenth century,  through  the  influence  of  the  reign- 
ing Prussian  Princes.  Being  founded  at  a  time 
when  historic  continuity  was  beginning  to  be  appre- 
ciated, it  was  planned  with  a  feeling  for  consecutive 
order,  and  is  famous  for  its  systematic  arrange- 
ment. 

But  when  the  Dresden  Gallery  was  founded,  by 
Elector  Augustus  (who  was  succeeded  by  August 
the  Strong,  followed  by  Augustus  JIL),  the  idea  of 


2         Zbc  Brt  ot  tbe  H)resDen  (Bailer^ 

an  actual  evolution  in  art  had  not  been  emphasized, 
and  the  standard  was,  simply,  to  display  the  art 
treasures  without  reference  one  to  another.  The 
collection  was  started  in  1560,  by  the  Elector  Au- 
gustus, when  he  set  up  an  art  gallery  above  his  own 
apartments  in  the  Palace  in  Dresden.  In  1694, 
August  the  Strong  intentionally  founded  the  gal- 
lery. It  was  an  unfortunate  period  in  art  and  archi- 
tecture, taste  being  rococo,  and  historic  continuity 
of  no  account.  The  collection  of  early  sixteenth- 
century  paintings,  inherited  by  August  the  Strong, 
was  the  nucleus  of  the  Dresden  Gallery.  There  was 
no  attempt  made  to  secure  earlier  pictures  at  this 
time.  This  prince  bought  pictures  which  appealed 
to  the  taste  of  the  eighteenth  century,  joyously 
acquiring  numerous  examples  of  the  art  then  chiefly 
in  vogue,  Flemish  and  Dutch.  Examples  were  ob- 
tained of  Rubens,  Jordaens,  and  Teniers,  Dou, 
Metsu,  Ter  Borch,  and  Wouwermans,  while  Italian 
pictures  by  Giorgione,  Albani,  and  Cima  had  been 
acquired. 

More  important  was  the  progress  of  the  Gallery 
under  Augustus  III.,  who  governed  from  1733  to 
1763.  This  king's  minister,  Graf  von  Briihl,  di- 
rected the  purchases,  and  the  collection  grew  so  that 
it  was  necessary  to  move  into  larger  quarters.  Dur- 
ing the  reign  of  August  the  Strong,  two  hundred 
pictures  had  been  purchased;  Augustus  III.,  though 


Barli?  Utalians;  IRapbael  an&  Correagio  3 

not  important  for  his  deeds  of  statesmanship,  was 
full  of  artistic  tastes,  and  the  court  was  one  of  ex- 
travagant gorgeousness.  The  chief  masterpieces  of 
the  Golden  Era  of  art  which  are  in  Dresden  were 
secured  during  this  recklessly  lavish  period.  Espe- 
cially devoted  to  the  riper  Italians,  Augustus  III. 
added  numerous  examples  of  the  florid  post-Raph- 
aelite  period.  Also  he  was  the  purchaser  of  the 
world-famed  collection  of  Francisco  III.,  Duke  of 
Modena.  Never  before  had  so  superb  a  collection 
been  seen  north  of  the  Alps.  Titian's  Tribute 
Money,  the  four  great  Correggios,  the  enormous 
paintings  by  Veronese,  and  celebrated  pictures  by 
Andrea  del  Sarto,  Carracci,  Guido  Reni,  Dosso 
Dossi,  and  Garofalo,  as  well  as  a  Velasquez,  a  Hol- 
bein, and  Rubens's  St.  Jerome,  were  among  them. 
This  was  rather  the  period  for  purchasers  than 
for  producers ;  art  critics  were  despatched  to  all  the 
leading  centres,  and  collecting  became  a  royal 
craze.  Between  1741  and  1742  the  Dresden  Gal- 
lery added  seven  hundred  and  fifteen  pictures  to  its 
numbers.  Even  painters  found  that  there  was  more 
profit  in  turning  agent  than  in  painting  pictures 
themselves.  It  was  through  one  of  these,  the  artist 
Carlo  Giovannini  of  Bologna,  that  negotiations 
were  made  to  purchase  the  Sistine  Madonna  of 
Raphael  from  the  monks  at  Piacenza.     The  Au- 


4        Ube  Brt  ot  tbe  Dres&en  (Bailer^ 

gustan  age  in  Saxony  came  to  an  end  with  the  death 
of  Augustus  III. 

During  the  nineteenth  century  very  judicious 
management  proved  of  great  service  to  the  Gallery, 
for  pictures  were  bought  with  a  higher  motive  than 
to  please  the  taste  of  a  single  prince  with  exotic 
ideals.  Intelligent  directors,  Johann  Anton  Riedel, 
C.  F.  Damiani,  J.  F.  Matthai,  and  then  the  painters 
Julius  Schnorr  and  Julius  Hiibner,  guided  the  ex- 
penditures and  practical  matters,  by  means  of  their 
tact  and  culture,  at  the  same  time  educating  the 
taste  of  the  public,  while  ever  since  1848,  mod- 
ern pictures  have  been  purchased  from  time  to  time, 
as  well  as  examples  of  the  Old  Masters.  During 
the  past  ten  years  the  gallery  has  kept  specially 
abreast  of  the  times,  under  the  directorship  of  the 
celebrated  Dr.  Karl  Woermann, 

Pictures  in  Dresden  are  hung  more  with  a  view 
to  their  size  and  breadth,  or  to  their  minuteness 
and  delicacy,  than  with  an  eye  to  consecutive  pro- 
gression. Each  picture  is  placed  in  such  a  position 
and  light  as  shall  most  enhance  its  peculiar  worth. 
The  larger  pictures,  which  may  easily  be  seen  at  a 
distance,  are  hung  in  the  central  halls,  and  effect- 
ively lighted  from  above;  the  smaller  pictures  are 
placed  in  little  rooms  or  cabinets,  leading  out  of  the 
larger  salons,  and  lighted  from  the  side.  This  is 
the  most  satisfactory  system  of  hanging  for  the 


it). 


1 6th  and 

iry. 


>■■■■■■ 


T  ^  4  10  TiiT  12T  *  ■ 


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>  1 45 1 44 


14  I  15  I   16  [  17  I  IB  I   19  I  20  I  21   I      N 

"     I.'.    I      ".t" 

1 49  I  50  I  51  J       I 


47        148  I  49  I  50  I  51 
^E 


u 


PLAN  OF    THE   FIRST  FLOOR 


E.  H.     Entrance  Hall.     French  School.     iSth  Century. 
A.     Raphael's  ■■  Madonna  di  San  Sisto," 
B.     Iialian  School.     i6ih  and  17th  Centuries. 
C      Italian  School-      i6l!i  to  17th  Century. 
D.     Italian   School.     i6lh    and   17th   Centuries  (Cor- 
reg|io). 

i6th   and    17th   Centuries  (Ve- 


^tian). 


H-     Spanish  and  Italian  School. 
J.     Flemish  and  Spanish  School. 


17th  Century  (Mu- 
17th  Centurj-  {Ru- 
[7th  Cenlur}'  (Rem- 


Dutch  and  Flemish  School.  17th  Century. 
Dutch  and  Flemish  School.  17th  Century, 
German  and  Dutch  School,     ijih  and  i6lh  Cen- 

tunes  (Holbein). 
Old  German  School.     16th  Century  (Cranach). 
Dutch  and  German  School.     i6th  to  i8tb  Century. 
Dutch  and  German  School.     17th  and  18th  Cen- 


Iralian  School.     i6th  to  17th  Century. 

French  School.     17th  and  i8th  Centuries  (Claude 

Dutch  School.     17th  and  i8lh  Centuries  (Van  der 

Werff). 
Dutch  School.     I7lh  Century. 
Dutch  School.     17th  Century  (Poeleoburgh), 
Dutch  School.      i7lh  Century, 
Dutch  School.     17th  Century  (Ruysdael). 
Dutch  School.      I7lh  Century. 
Dutch  School.     i7lh  Centun- (Potter). 
Dutch  School.     i7lh  Centurj-  (Rembrandt). 
Dutch  School.     17th  Century  (Dou). 
Dutch  School.     17th  Century  (Ostade). 
Dutch  School.     17th  Centurj". 
Flemish  School.     17th  Century. 
Old  German  and  old  Flemish  Schools.     i6th  and 

17th  Centuries^ 


learlp  Utalians;  IRapbael  an^  Corregoio  5 

casual  spectator;  for  the  student  of  art,  of  course, 
it  involves  some  travelling  about,  in  order  that  one 
may  examine  paintings  in  their  proper  sequence. 
In  preparing  these  observations  I  have  thought  it 
best,  so  far  as  practicable,  to  consider  all  the 
works  of  an  artist  together,  and,  as  a  rule,  the  cab- 
inets so  supplement  the  halls,  that  it  is  possible  to 
do  this  without  going  far  out  of  one's  way.  I  have 
retained  the  system  of  lettering  and  numbering  for 
the  halls  and  cabinets  as  used  in  the  Official  Cata- 
logue; this  unity  of  plan  makes  it  easier  to  use  both 
books  without  confusion. 

In  order  to  examine  the  pictures  in  appropriate 
order,  it  is  well  to  begin  in  the  series  of  cabinets  at 
the  extreme  right,  i,  2,  3,  and  4,  afterwards  study- 
ing Hall  D,  proceeding  thence  by  the  precious  little 
room  in  the  corner,  A  on  the  plan,  —  where  hangs 
but  one  picture,  but  that  the  greatest  in  the  gallery, 
—  the  Sistine  Madonna  of  Raphael. 

One  of  the  surest  ways  of  determining  the  attri- 
bution of  a  picture  is  a  close  observation  of  the 
treatment  of  the  hands  and  of  the  ears.  The  old 
masters  gave  little  thought  to  these  details;  it  was 
not  until  later  that  men  realized  that  there  was 
character  in  hands,  and  even  in  ears.  Therefore, 
from  giving  these  features  little  heed,  they  almost 
invariably  fell  into  some  special  way  of  painting 
them,  —  all   the  hands   painted   by   Botticelli,    for 


6        XTbe  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresden  6aller^ 

instance,  conform  to  one  type,  and  the  same  may 
be  said  of  the  ears.  Now,  a  critic  who  is  on  the 
lookout  for  such  things,  can  say,  almost  confidently, 
"  Such  and  such  a  picture  cannot  be  by  Botticelli, 
for  the  hands  are  those  painted  by  Filippino  Lippi, 
or  the  ear  is  such  an  ear  as  only  Mantegna  painted," 
and  by  comparing  hundreds  of  instances,  and  find- 
ing, as  they  do,  that  a  given  man  will  always  paint 
a  given  feature  in  a  certain  way,  they  are  able  to 
determine  more  accurately  than  ever  before  the 
origin  of  various  works. 

Morelli  considers  that  the  picture  which  is  usu- 
ally supposed  to  have  been  by  Fra  Angelico,  is  a 
feeble  example  of  Benozzo  Gozzoli.  It  is  the  near- 
est we  come  to  either  of  these  early  artists  in  the 
Dresden  Gallery,  and  should  not  be  regarded  as 
representative  of  the  Florentines  of  that  period. 
It  is  the  Annunciation,  and  it  hangs  in  the  first  cab- 
inet, among  the  primitive  painters. 

There  is  a  very  decorative  painting  in  this  cab- 
inet, No.  8,  a  Virgin  and  Child,  probably  a  studio- 
piece  from  the  school  of  Botticelli.  The  rich  blues 
and  green  are  very  effective.  The  picture,  if  not  an 
original,  is  at  any  rate  a  characteristic  bit  of  work 
to  have  come  from  his  studio,  and  is  full  of  the 
naive  sweetness  of  his  studies.  The  tender  details 
of  the  veil  and  robe-border  are  like  the  works  of 
an  illuminator,  and  the  book-cover,  lying  on  the 


Barls  Utalians;  IRapbael  an&  CotvcQQio  7 

table  by  the  Virgin  and  Child,  is  finished  as  if  by 
a  jeweller.  The  affectionate  action  of  the  child  in 
turning  to  his  mother  is  human,  and  the  two  faces 
are  unusually  beautiful,  although  St.  John  has  an 
underfed  look,  and  is  evidently  the  work  of  an  infe- 
rior painter.  Near  by  hangs  a  set  of  pictures  as- 
cribed to  Botticelli,  representing  scenes  from  the 
life  of  St.  Zenobius.  The  colouring  is  hard  and 
reddish,  and  the  pictures  very  curious.  In  the  first, 
a  boy  is  being  run  over  in  the  street;  the  second 
panel  exhibits  the  mother  of  the  boy  taking  him  to 
the  Saint,  that  a  miracle  may  be  performed  upon 
him ;  and  in  the  third,  St.  Zenobius  is  restoring  the 
healed  child  to  his  mother.  In  the  fourth  panel  the 
death  of  the  Saint  is  depicted.  In  the  school  piece. 
No.  10,  the  face  of  the  Virgin  recalls  the  Madonna 
in  a  tondo  by  Botticelli  in  the  National  Gallery  of 
London. 

There  is  a  picture  here  ascribed  to  Lorenzo  dl 
Credi,  which,  twenty  years  ago,  was  believed  to  be 
by  Leonardo  da  Vinci.  Morelli  considers  it  a  Flem- 
ish copy  of  a  picture  by  Verrocchio.  The  treatment 
is  certainly  Northern,  and  the  hard,  uncompromis- 
ing surface  of  the  flesh  is  not  characteristic  of 
Credi,  although  the  general  appearance,  at  a  first 
glance,  might  lead  one  to  suppose  it  an  original. 
The  child  is  hideously  flabby,  with  fat  lying  in  folds 
and  rings,  not  at  all  like  the  flesh  of  a  chubby  child; 


8        'Cbe  Brt  ox  tbe  Dresden  Gallery 

in  addition  to  which  he  is  nearly  cross-eyed.  When 
this  picture  was  ascribed  to  Leonardo,  a  baleful 
contagion  seemed  to  spread  among  the  European 
galleries.  Berlin  instantly  produced  a  forgotten 
picture,  and  heralded  it  as  a  Leonardo,  and  Munich, 
unwilling  to  be  outdone,  immediately  discovered  an 
example  of  his  work  lurking  unsuspected  in  its  col- 
lection. Turn  from  this  picture  to  another  example 
of  Lorenzo  di  Credi,  No.  15,  and  contrast  it  with 
the  clear,  delicate  work,  like  that  of  an  illuminated 
missal.  The  Virgin  and  Child  in  this  picture  are 
flanked  by  St.  John  the  Evangelist  and  St.  Sebas- 
tian. The  composition  is  formal  and  decorative,  — 
the  two  saints  with  their  characteristic  gestures,  so 
full  of  mannered  grace,  are  beautiful  figures  as  sup- 
porters for  the  Virgin  and  Child.  The  infant  is 
allowed  the  human  interest  of  trying  to  reach  for- 
ward to  one  of  the  saints. 

The  Virgin  of  the  school  of  Filippino  Lippi,  with 
her  sweet,  long  eyes,  is  very  attractive. 

A  lovely,  puce-pink  tone  pervades  the  portrait  of 
a  boy  by  Pinturicchio,  which  may  be  seen  on  the 
same  wall  with  the  Botticelli,  in  the  first  cabinet. 
The  face  is  full  of  that  young  immaturity  which 
might  be  seen  in  any  boy  of  the  streets  to-day;  put 
this  charming  little  person  into  a  newsboy's  shabby 
coat,  cut  his  hair,  and  put  a  slouched  round  cap  on 
his  head,  and  lo!   the  Bowery!    or  Whitechapel ! 


FRANCESCO    COSSA.  —  ANNUNCIATION 


Barls  Utalians;  TRapbael  ant>  Correoaio  9 

There  is  an  Annunciation  here  by  the  most  im- 
portant Ferrarese  master,  next  to  Cosimo  Tura; 
this  is  Francesco  Cossa,  who  Hved  in  the  latter 
half  of  the  fifteenth  century.  In  a  decorated  hall 
of  florid  Renaissance  style,  Mary  and  the  Angel 
are  seen ;  very  ornate  —  very  much  out  of  keeping 
with  the  simple  story.  The  details  of  the  picture 
are  quite  suggestive  of  Crivelli's  conceits,  but  the 
colour  and  texture  are  harder  and  colder.  A  snail 
crawling  on  the  ground  may  be  symbolic  of  domes- 
tic peace,  but  is  more  probably  a  miniature  freak  of 
decorative  zeal.  Morelli  scorns  the  idea  that  Cossa 
was  influenced  by  van  der  Weyden;  and  yet,  in 
the  work  of  this  artist,  and  also  in  that  of  Cosimo 
Tura,  there  are  certain  hard,  German  qualities  in 
the  expression  of  the  faces,  which  give  some  ex- 
cuse for  this  theory,  which  has  been  expressed. 
Cossa  suffered  a  keen  disappointment  when,  after 
he  had,  as  he  supposed,  risen  to  the  rank  of  a  great 
master,  his  name  appeared  in  the  records  of  the 
artists  decorating  the  Schifanoia  Palace  as  only 
one  of  the  workmen,  on  the  same  level  as  the 
others. 

There  is  here  a  sweet  little  Virgin  and  Child  by 
Giacomo  Francia,  a  son  and  pupil  of  Francesco. 
The  Child  holds  a  little  bird  in  his  hand,  and  the 
young  Baptist  leans  over  the  shoulder  of  the  mother 
in  an  effort  to  see  it. 


lo       ubc  Hrt  of  tbe  2)re65en  Galleri? 

A  dashing,  rich  picture,  called  "  A  Loving 
Couple,"  by  some  unknown  Venetian  painter,  has  a 
surface  of  enamel  finish,  and  is  enough  like  some 
of  Giorgione's  work  to  have  been  given  to  him  for 
awhile,  but  is  no  longer  attributed  with  confidence 
to  any  special  artist. 

The  Presentation  of  the  Virgin,  by  Cima  da 
Conegliano,  is  a  naive  and  interesting  composition, 
prefiguring,  as  it  does,  the  great  Titian's  Presenta- 
tion in  Venice.  A  literal  transcript  of  the  passage 
in  Josephus  is  here  made,  "  Between  the  wall  which 
separated  the  men  from  the  women  and  the  great 
porch  of  the  Temple,  were  fifteen  steps."  Here 
we  have  the  fifteen  steps,  with  the  High  Priest 
standing  at  the  top,  and  the  wall  is  seen  as  de- 
scribed. The  great  porch  —  a  sort  of  open  Re- 
naissance loggia,  with  the  tower  of  the  Palazzo 
Vecchio  at  one  corner  —  occupies  the  left  side  of 
the  picture.  The  Virgin,  a  tiny  child,  in  contadina 
costume,  carrying  a  lighted  candle,  ascends  the 
steps  with  reverence.  As  a  concession  to  the  East- 
ern setting,  the  bystanders  are  represented  in  tur- 
bans, and  there  are  some  curious  interpretations  of 
palmetto-trees,  splaying  forth  into  stiff,  umbrella 
tops.  It  is  particularly  interesting  to  note  that  the 
old  woman  sitting  on  the  lower  step,  with  a  basket 
of  eggs,  is  alfnost  exactly  the  figure  as  painted  by 
Titian,  with  the  same  profile  and  head-dress.     A 


Barl^  Utalians;  IRapbael  ant)  Gorregolo  ^ 

boy  with  a  cage  of  birds  to  sell  sits  with  his  arms 
akimbo,  watching  the  little  maiden's  progress,  with 
some  amusement. 

There  is  a  pleasant,  bright  picture  by  Ludovico 
Mazzolini,  of  the  Presentation  of  Christ  in  the 
Temple.  The  church  dignitaries  liked  Mazzolini's 
work,  as  it  was  brilliantly  coloured,  and  had  a  popu- 
lar appeal,  so  that  he  was  often  employed  to  paint 
religious  scenes. 

Ercole  Roberti,  who  lived  in  the  time  of  Tura 
and  Cossa,  is  well  represented  by  two  interesting 
pictures,  very  decorative  in  colour  and  skilful  in 
grouping.  Christ  on  the  way  to  Golgotha  is  the 
subject  of  one,  while  the  other  shows  the  Betrayal 
and  the  arrest  of  Jesus.  This  pair  of  panels  hang 
on  the  same  wall  in  the  first  cabinet.  There  is  also 
a  copy  near  them  of  Roberti's  picture  in  the  Na- 
tional Gallery,  the  Gathering  of  Manna  in  the 
Wilderness.      These    paintings    were    acquired    in 

1750- 

Here,  too,  is  a  charming  Holy  Family,  by  Man- 

tegna,  the  handling  of  which  has  almost  the  force 
of  a  modern  work.  It  has  a  glorious  low  tone,  and 
a  mellow  quality,  partly  owing  to  the  fact  that  it 
is  painted  in  extremely  transparent  medium  on  a 
very  rough,  twilled  canvas,  —  the  paint  is  very  thin, 
and  the  texture,  therefore,  of  the  whole  is  unusual 
in  works  of  its  period.     Regarding  its  composition, 


12      ube  art  ot  tbe  H)resDcn  aaller^ 

too,  it  is  graceful  and  unaffected.  The  picture  was 
bought  from  Sir  Charles  Eastlake. 

As  we  proceed  into  the  next  cabinet,  we  find  a 
picture  by  Polidoro  Veneziano  (or  Lanzani),  who 
is  better  represented  here  than  in  any  other  gallery. 
A  Venetian  nobleman  is  seen  in  the  act  of  present- 
ing his  daughter  to  St.  Joseph,  that  she  may  be 
dedicated  to  the  Virgin  Mary.  It  might  have  been 
painted  by  Veronese  himself.  There  is  an  effective 
portrait  of  a  lady  in  mourning,  which  was  ascribed 
to  Pordenone,  but  later  criticism  has  denied  its  au- 
thenticity. 

The  clear,  pure  tones  of  Cima  da  Conegliano 
show  up  with  that  brilliant  translucency  which  some 
people  admire  so  extravagantly  in  the  full-length 
figure  of  the  Saviour  in  the  act  of  blessing.  The 
fact  that  two  men  in  the  background  are  holding 
the  bridle  of  an  ass,  suggests  that  it  may  have  been 
the  author's  intention  to  portray  the  Lord  as  he 
was  about  to  start  on  the  Entry  into  Jerusalem. 

In  Cabinet  3,  Franciabigio,  the  companion  of 
Andrea  del  Sarto,  is  seen  in  an  important  picture; 
Uriah  is  taking  the  fatal  letter,  while  David  gloat- 
ingly gazes  down  from  the  house-tops  at  Bathsheba, 
who  is  bathing  recklessly  in  the  foreground.  She 
is  surrounded  by  her  maidens,  one  of  whom  carries 
a   ewer,   with   the   initials   of   the   artist   inscribed 


Barl^  Utalians ;  IRapbael  ant)  Corregoio  13 

upon  it.  The  bath  itself  is  decorated  with  the  arms 
of  the  Medici. 

The  familiar  picture,  known  as  Correggio's 
Magdalen,  hangs  here.  In  the  first  place  she  is  too 
virginally  fresh  and  youthful-looking.  This  repent- 
ant Magdalen  may  be  a  copy  of  some  lost  original 
by  Correggio.  The  blue  colour  is  much  more  like 
that  used  by  van  der  Werff,  and  it  may  well  have 
been  executed  by  a  Flemish  artist  of  that  school. 
It  was  brought  from  Modena  in  1746.  This  picture 
has  been  inexplicably  popular;  there  is  scarcely  a 
child  who  has  not  seen  some  engraving  or  photo- 
graph of  it.  When  Velasquez  saw  it,  on  one  of  his 
Italian  journeys,  it  was  owned  by  the  Princes 
d'Este,  and  was  carried  with  them  on  all  their 
travels,  and  kept  under  lock  and  key,  in  a  frame  of 
silver  set  with  precious  stones. 

Morelli  records  an  amusing  conversation,  too 
long  to  quote  in  full,  which  he  had  with  a  German 
lady  and  her  father,  while  standing  before  this 
Magdalen,  which  was  then  still  attributed  to  Cor- 
reggio. They  talked  for  a  time  upon  the  subject 
of  art  critics  and  their  iconoclastic  tendencies,  and 
then  the  lady  asked  Morelli  if  he  did  not  consider 
the  Magdalen  the  most  beautiful  and  valuable  pic- 
ture in  Dresden.  Morelli  had  already  told  them 
that  he  was  an  art  student,  and  they  had  no  idea 
of  his  importance  in  the  field  of  art.     When  he 


14      Ube  Brt  ot  the  H)rest)en  Gallery 

stated  deliberately  that  he  did  not  believe  the  pic- 
ture to  be  a  Correggio  at  all,  but  a  seventeenth-cen- 
tury Flemish  work,  they  drew  back  in  horror.  The 
lady  remarked,  "  Really  this  is  too  bad !  But  per- 
haps you  are  only  joking?"  Morelli  assured  her 
that  he  was  quite  in  earnest,  and  pointed  out  the 
various  defects  of  the  picture:  the  crude  ultra- 
marine blue,  which  was  very  like  that  used  by  van 
der  Werff ;  the  affected  long  fingers ;  the  laboured, 
oversmooth  treatment  of  the  foreground,  and  the 
coquettish  lack  of  naivete  in  the  general  design ;  he 
asked  her  to  compare  the  trees  with  those  in  van 
der  Werff 's  pictures,  Nos.  1817  and  181 8,  in  the 
same  gallery.  She  turned  from  him  in  self-suffi- 
cient scorn,  "  You  will  never  convince  me,"  she 
declared.  "  You  have  evidently  never  read  the  writ- 
ings of  Raphael  Mengs;  he  was  a  great  art  critic, 
and  he  studied  Correggio  profoundly,  and  entered 
thoroughly  into  his  mode  of  thought  and  feeling. 
In  his  eyes  this  picture  was  the  finest  of  all  the  mas- 
ter's works,  and,  moreover,  our  great  poet,  Schlegel, 
wrote  one  of  his  most  charming  sonnets  in  praise 
of  this  Magdalen."  At  this  juncture  the  lady's 
father  had  the  tact  to  suggest  that  she  should  recite 
this  sonnet.  She  spared  Morelli  the  doubtful  joy 
of  listening  to  her  rendering  of  it,  saying,  "  To 
preach  to  deaf  ears  is  useless."  Then  she  proceeded, 
tartly,  "  Criticism  is  like  fire,  destroying  all  it  comes 


jEarls  Utalians;  IRapbacl  an&  Correggio  is 

in  contact  with.  A  short  time  ago  the  critics  at- 
tacked our  beautiful  Madonna  by  Holbein,  and  now 
they  have  the  audacity  to  disparage  Correggio's 
world-renowned  Magdalen.  Such  proceedings  may 
be  tolerated  in  Russia,  where  Nihilism  is  rampant, 
but  in  Germany,  fortunately,  we  have  so  many  ad- 
mirable connoisseurs  and  students  of  art  that  such 
pernicious  and  revolutionary  attempts  will  soon  be 
stamped  out.  Let  us  go."  And  they  swept  out  of 
the  gallery. 

Mr.  Frank  Preston  Stearns  disputes  earnestly 
Morelli's  dictum  upon  Correggio's  Magdalen.  To 
him  the  picture  is  absolutely  convincing  and  char- 
acteristic, as  it  certainly  would  seem  to  many  who 
have  not  applied  to  it  the  most  severe  tests  of  scien- 
tific criticism.  He,  with  Raphael  Mengs,  still 
believes  it  to  be  the  finest  of  Correggio's  works. 

Mr.  G.  B.  Rose  expresses  well  the  attitude  of  the 
artistic  world  toward  the  Magdalen  of  Correggio. 
"  It  is  a  lovely  little  jewel  taken  from  Correggio's 
crown,"  he  says ;  "  A  jewel  that  never  belonged 
there,  but  which  he  had  worn  so  long  that  we  regret 
to  see  it  go." 

The  subject  of  the  panel,  No.  80,  by  Ubertini, 
is  rather  an  interesting  one.  Four  sons  of  a  king, 
so  runs  the  story  in  the  Gesta  Romanorum,  fell  to 
quarrelling  for  the  crown  of  their  father,  at  his 
death.     At  length  they  agreed  to  abide  by  the  de- 


i6       Tibc  Brt  of  tbe  2)te8&en  Gallerg 

cision  of  an  arbitrator,  who  decreed  that  they  should 
take  the  dead  body  of  the  king,  and  suspend  it  from 
a  tree,  and  then  shoot  arrows  at  it ;  and  he  who  shot 
it  through  the  heart  should  inherit  the  kingdom. 
The  first  arrow  wounded  the  hand;  the  second 
pierced  the  cheek,  and  the  third  entered  the  heart 
of  the  corpse.  Therefore  the  third  son  considered 
it  certain  that  he  should  succeed  to  the  kingdom. 
But  the  youngest  wept  and  refused  to  aim  an 
arrow  at  his  father's  body;  whereupon  every  one 
agreed  that  he  was  the  only  one  fit  to  rule,  and  the 
others  were  banished. 

Girolamo  da  Carpi  is  believed  to  have  painted 
the  picture,  144,  hitherto  ascribed  to  Dossi.  It  is 
a  Judith  holding  the  head  of  Holof ernes.  The  in- 
fluence of  Parmeggianino  may  be  traced  in  the 
work. 

Ippolito  Scarsella,  who  formed  his  style  partly 
on  Veronese,  is  the  author  of  the  interesting  Holy 
Family  in  the  Carpenter's  Shop,  where  St.  Joseph 
is  working  with  a  saw  exactly  like  the  one  now  in 
use  in  modern  Germany. 

Bartolommeo  Veneto's  half-length  composition, 
the  Daughter  of  Herodias  with  the  head  of  John 
the  Baptist  on  a  charger,  is  full  of  rich  red  and 
green  of  a  deep  hue.  This  picture  had  long  been 
ascribed  to  Leonardo.  The  jewels  which  the  woman 
wears  are  attractive;  a  ruby  is  bound  upon  her 


Barl^  Utalians;  IRapbael  an^  CorreoGio  17 

brow,  while  the  neck  of  her  dress  is  bordered  by- 
precious  stones.  She  has  the  same  strange  crinkled- 
wiry  hair  which  frequently  occurs  in  the  paintings 
of  Veneto.  There  is  a  portrait  in  Frankfort  which 
is  a  good  example  of  this  peculiarity. 

There  is  a  superb  portrait  here  which  must  strike 
all  who  see  it  as  extremely  vital.  It  is  by  Morando, 
or  Cavazzola,  of  Verona.  He  was  a  pupil  of  Do- 
menico  Morone,  and  was  surely  quite  the  equal  of 
his  master  on  this  occasion.  The  portrait  is  of  a 
man  attired  in  velvet  and  fur,  with  scintillating 
cuffs  of  yellow  and  black  metallic  material  of  most 
lustrous  effect.  The  subject  is  said  to  have  been 
a  member  of  a  patrician  family  of  Verona  in  the 
days  when  Morando  was  working.  The  artist  lived 
from  i486  to  1522.  The  face  is  that  of  a  beardless 
elderly  man;  he  wears  a  dark  slouch  cap. 

In  order  to  see  the  earliest  examples  of  Sienese 
art  which  Dresden  possesses  (and  they  are  hardly 
worth  the  trip),  one  must  go  down-stairs  and  quite 
along  to  the  end  of  the  corridor  on  the  right  as 
one  descends;  there,  in  the  forty-third  cabinet,  may 
be  seen  the  few  unworthy  examples  of  this  great 
school.  There  are  some  other  interesting  early  Ital- 
ians, however. 

A  lovely  bit,  having  the  soft,  moth-wing  quali- 
ties of  a  fresco,  is  the  decorative  Virgin  in  a 
Garden,  adoring  her  child,  by  Ambrogio  Bevilacqua. 


i8       xibe  Hrt  ot  tbe  H)resben  (3aller^ 

This  artist  is  the  only  distinctly  Milanese  painter 
in  the  gallery;  he  worked  at  the  end  of  the  fifteenth 
century.  The  curious,  delicately  finished  row  of 
trees  should  be  noticed,  and  also  the  mediaeval 
scrolls  held  by  angels. 

No.  21,  a  Madonna,  by  a  follower  of  Rafaello 
de  Capponi,  has  certain  glowing,  transparent  greens 
in  it  which  are  worth  noticing. 

Of  course,  the  Mecca  of  all  visitors  to  the  Dres- 
den gallery  is  the  small  room  in  the  farther  corner 
where  Raphael's  Sistine  Madonna  is  enshrined 
alone.  To  many  travellers  this  picture  is  a  syno- 
nym for  the  gallery,  and  they  hardly  notice  the 
numerous  excellent  masterpieces  which  intervene. 
It  is  our  purpose  to  examine  these  other  works,  and 
try  to  do  away  with  the  popular  impression  that  one 
visits  the  Dresden  collection  almost  entirely  to  see 
this  one  great  painting.  I  remember,  I  was  stand- 
ing in  one  of  the  smaller  cabinets,  one  day,  lost  in 
admiration  of  a  delicate  Vermeer  of  Delft,  when 
I  heard  a  party  of  Americans  approaching.  Two 
learned-looking  young  ladies  with  eye-glasses  were 
calling  the  wayward  attention  of  their  mother  to 
the  excellences  of  the  Dutch  school.  But,  al- 
though the  good  woman  had  evidently  provided 
that  her  children  should  benefit  by  the  higher  cul- 
ture, she  had  little  use  for  it  herself.  "  Ain't  we 
'most  got  to  that  Sistine  Madonna  ?  "  she  almost 


Barlp  lltalians;  IRapbael  an&  (Torreaaio  19 

wailed.  As  the  tired  figure  passed  by,  and  as  the 
trio  moved  out  of  sight,  I  registered  an  earnest 
hope  that  the  poor  weary  soul  would  find  refresh- 
ment in  gazing  into  the  wonderful  eyes  of  the 
child  in  Mary's  arms.  And  perhaps  the  most  im- 
portant element  in  the  greatness  of  that  picture  is 
its  absolutely  universal  appeal.  Be  a  man  a  critic 
or  an  ignoramus;  be  he  professor  or  untutored 
peasant,  there  is  a  message  for  him.  The  Infinite 
has  been  brought  as  nearly  into  human  presentment 
in  those  two  faces  as  is  possible  in  the  realm  of 
graphic  art. 

The  general  plan  of  the  picture  is  in  no  way  re- 
markable. The  green  curtains,  which  are  probably 
introduced  to  suggest  a  sudden  breaking  of  the 
heavenly  vision  upon  the  veiled  eyes  of  earth,  are 
stagey  and  unnecessary.  It  is  claimed  that  the  two 
little  cherubs  were  an  afterthought,  and  that  the 
lines  of  the  clouds  over  which  they  were  painted 
can  be  traced  through  their  surface. 

The  Sistine  Madonna  is  the  apotheosis  of  mother- 
hood. The  white  effulgence  which  surrounds  the 
figures  is  suitable  to  this  altar  of  wondering  divine 
innocence.  The  charm  does  not  lie  in  the  colour, 
but  in  the  expression.  The  deepest  and  truest 
spiritual  insight  is  here  exhibited,  and  Raphael  has 
made  the  nearest  approach  to  painting  the  soul  that 
has  ever  been  acliieved. 


20       ubc  Hrt  ot  tbe  Dre5&en  Gallery 

When  one  considers  his  age,  it  seems  almost  in- 
credible that  a  young  man  should  have  had  suffi- 
cient knowledge  of  both  worlds  to  paint  such  a 
flawless  epitome  of  the  Christian  religion  as  the 
faces  of  this  mother  and  her  child.  But,  though 
Raphael's  life  did  not  measure  itself  by  scores  of 
years,  there  is  a  truer  scale  of  measurement  —  the 
gauging  of  life  by  emotion,  by  study,  and  by  nat- 
ural intellect.  By  this  standard,  Raphael's  life  was 
as  long  as  eternal  things.  What  had  been  the  men- 
tal history  of  the  youth?  Had  he  been  taken  up 
with  watching  money  come  and  go,  or  had  he  spent 
his  time  in  social  frivolities  ?  No ;  work  —  the 
truest  of  all  experiences  —  had  been  his  portion; 
not  drudgery  of  work,  tiring  body  and  soul  with  its 
monotony,  but  buoyant,  interesting,  vital  work, 
which  filled  his  longings,  and  satisfied  his  ambitions, 
and  made  him  independent  of  companionship  or 
environment ;  work  in  which  his  mind  and  his  tech- 
nical skill  were  daily  engaged,  and  in  which  he  re- 
joiced wath  the  strength  and  enthusiasm  of  an 
unspoiled  vigour.  The  characters  which  he  had 
constant  need  to  study  during  these  early  years 
were  the  sacred  men  of  Scripture;  the  family 
of  Our  Lord ;  the  subjects  which  he  had  been 
obliged  to  consider,  and  to  consider  deeply  and 
seriously,  before  he  could  have  painted  them,  were 
such  as  the  Crucifixion,  the  Resurrection  of  Christ, 


Barlp  Utalians;  IRapbael  ant)  CorregQio  21 

the  Virgin  as  a  loving  mother,  as  a  sorrowing 
mourner,  and  as  a  saint  transfigured.  He  had 
to  conceive  the  spiritual  forms  of  the  hierarchies 
of  heaven,  to  render  visible  to  an  unlettered  people 
the  forms  of  angels  and  archangels,  and  to  portray 
all  manifestations  of  human  and  divine  love.  In 
his  early  days  he  painted  that  exquisite  little  Vision 
of  a  Young  Knight,  in  London,  with  the  two  paths 
of  life  typified  by  the  two  women  of  opposite  types; 
an  allegory  which  showed  that  he  was  consciously 
turning  to  the  right,  and  conscientiously  trying  to 
follow  the  uplifting  vision  of  a  virtuous  progress. 
St.  George,  the  warrior  against  evil  —  St.  Michael 
destroying  the  demon  of  sloth,  greed,  and  lust: 
these  were  the  personages  to  whom  his  attention 
was  necessarily  turned,  and  his  unconscious  mental 
development  was  quickened  by  the  thoughts  with 
which  it  was  fed. 

Imagine  the  excitement  of  the  youth,  when, 
hardly  twenty  years  old,  he  went  to  Florence,  —  the 
Mecca  of  sesthetic  dreams  in  his  day,  —  armed 
with  a  letter  from  the  sister  of  the  Duke  of  Urbino, 
to  the  Gonfalonier,  Pietro  Soderini !  "  He  w^ho 
presents  this  letter  to  you,"  wrote  Johanna,  "  is 
Raphael,  a  painter  of  Urbino,  endowed  with  great 
talent  in  art.  He  has  decided  to  pass  some  time  at 
Florence,  in  order  to  improve  himself.  ...  As  his 
father,  who  was  dear  to  me,  w^as  full  of  good  qual- 


22       ube  Hrt  of  tbe  Bres^en  Gallery 

ities,  so  the  son  is  a  modest  young  man  of  distin- 
guished manners,  and  thus  I  bear  him  affection  on 
every  account,  and  wish  that  he  should  attain  per- 
fection. This  is  why  I  recommend  him  as  earnestly 
as  possible  to  your  Highness,  with  an  entreaty  that 
it  may  please  you,  for  the  love  of  me,  to  show  him 
help  and  protection  on  every  opportunity.  .  .  . 
From  her  who  commends  herself  to  you,  and  is 
willing  to  render  any  good  offices  in  return, 
Johanna  Feltra  de  Rovere." 

Then  came  the  great  days  in  Rome,  when  another 
mightier  than  he  Vv'as  by,  to  give  him  encourage- 
ment and  new  ambitions,  —  Michelangelo.  In  those 
days  he  planned  and  carried  out  deep  studies  on 
great,  burning  questions.  He  must  have  had  defi- 
nite theories  about  the  ancient  philosophies  before 
he  could  have  designed  and  executed  the  School  of 
Athens;  he  must  have  heard  and  weighed  the  big- 
oted strivings  and  self-righteous  bickerings  of 
ecclesiastics  before  he  could  have  painted  the  Dis- 
pute of  the  Sacrament;  he  must  have  steeped  his 
mind  in  the  fascinating  Greek  classics  and  entered 
into  the  idyllic  atmosphere  of  Myth  before  he  could 
have  created  the  loveliest  conception  of  Parnassus 
which  has  ever  been  evolved. 

Of  course,  it  was  not  possible  that  all  this  should 
be  the  exclusive  mental  food  of  a  virile  young  man 
with  such  universal  perceptions.    He  must  have  had 


Barli?  Italians ;  IRapbael  anb  Correaaio  23 

many  recreations  and  relaxations  from  this  intellec- 
tual discipline,  as  many  of  his  lighter  classical  sub- 
jects would  denote,  and  the  list  of  his  Madonnas 
is  here  and  there  interrupted  with  portraits  of  his 
mistress;  but  the  main  tendency,  the  life  that  counts 
for  something  when  the  physical  life  comes  to  an 
end,  was  upright,  far-seeing,  deeply  spiritual,  and 
comprehending.  To  such  a  man  it  was  possible, 
even  af  an  early  age,  as  years  are  counted,  to  give 
to  the  world  the  most  perfect  exposition  of  the  soul 
that  has  ever  breathed  from  a  canvas. 

Raphael  knew  the  hardships  of  the  life  of  the 
worker  —  not  only  the  bright,  glad  enthusiasm  was 
for  him;  as  he  says  himself  in  writing  to  Francia, 
"  entreating  his  indulgent  excuse "  for  having  so 
long  delayed  in  sending  him  a  picture  which  he  had 
promised :  "  Excuse  me,  therefore,  you  who  know 
from  frequent  experience  what  it  is  to  live  deprived 
of  one's  liberty,  and  at  the  command  of  patrons, 
who,  when  they  need  you  not,  lay  you  aside." 

There  are  thoughtful  art  historians  who  consider 
that  Raphael  died  at  the  right  moment,  —  that  so 
full  a  flowering  at  so  early  a  period  was  leading 
surely  toward  a  premature  dissolution  of  his  pow- 
ers, which  would  have  been  a  greater  aesthetic 
calamity  than  his  early  death. 

The  Sistine  Madonna  was  painted  in  1515,  at 
the  order  of  the  Benedictine  monks  of  San  Sisto, 


24       Ube  Hrt  of  the  H)res&en  Gallery 

at  Piacenza.  It  has  been  thought  strange  that  these 
poor  monks  were  able  to  secure  this  masterpiece 
originally.  It  is  quite  probable  that  the  Cardinal 
of  San  Sisto,  who  was  in  Bologna  in  15 14,  may- 
have  arranged  with  the  friars  for  this  painting,  for 
Piacenza  is  not  far  from  Bologna,  and  it  is  con- 
jecturable  that  some  of  the  monks  may  have  gone 
to  solicit  this  favour  from  the  cardinal.  The 
Elector  of  Saxony  bought  the  Sistine  Madonna  for 
eleven  thousand  sequins,  in  1753,  the  monks  not 
realizing  the  absolute  pricelessness  of  their  treasure. 
He  brought  it  to  his  palace  in  Dresden.  When  they 
tried  to  place  it  on  the  palace  wall  to  best  advan- 
tage, they  discovered  that  the  only  part  of  the  room 
where  the  light  was  favourable,  was  in  the  spot 
where  the  throne  stood.  The  Elector  immediately 
ordered  the  displacement  of  the  throne,  that  the 
place  of  honour  might  be  secured  for  the  pic- 
ture. 

The  faces  in  the  Madonna  di  San  Sisto  must 
have  been  painted  quickly  and  with  great  spon- 
taneity; they  suggest  the  vital  inspiration  of  pass- 
ing thought  and  emotion.  There  is  something  of 
the  eternal  about  the  picture.  It  seems  as  if  those 
wonderful  eyes  must  have  always  looked  into  the 
souls  of  men,  —  that  they  existed  always,  and  that 
they  will  never  cease  to  exist.  There  is  classic 
vigour  in  the  child  in  Mary's  arms.    He  is  not  sim- 


Barls  lltalians;  IRapbael  ant)  CorregGio  25 

ply  a  pretty  infant,  appealing  to  our  sympathies, 
and  calling  to  strength  to  minister  to  his  weakness ; 
he  is  already  a  ruler  of  men,  and  a  masterful  power 
making  for  righteousness.  Mr.  F.  P.  Stearns  says : 
"  I  have  gazed  at  the  Sistine  Madonna  day  after 
day,  until  I  discovered  that  her  eyes  were  painted 
in  such  a  manner  that  in  cloudy  weather  they  are 
scarcely  visible.'-  This  is  one  way  of  accounting 
for  the  marvellous  evanescence  and  transitoriness 
of  the  expression.  While  the  figures  of  St.  Sixtus 
and  St.  Barbara  do  not  enhance  the  value  of  the 
composition  in  this  case,  one  must  admit  the  ex- 
quisite beauty  of  the  upturned  face  of  the  old  man, 
and  the  technical  success  of  the  draperies  and  acces- 
sories. 

In  Room  B  we  find  Antonello  da  Messina's  St. 
Sebastian.  It  is  rather  hard  in  finish,  but  it  has 
an  adorable  background  of  blue-green,  which 
makes  up  for  many  deficiencies.  The  figure  of  the 
saint  is  so  large,  and  the  figures  of  other  personages 
in  the  picture  so  unduly  small,  considering  the 
slight  amount  of  distance  which  is  indicated,  that 
I  could  quite  understand  the  little  child  whom  I  saw 
looking  at  it,  when  she  remarked,  "  There's  Gulli- 
ver !  "  The  figure  of  a  sleeping  guard  is  comically 
foreshortened.  The  little  background  figures  are 
spirited  and  the  details  excellent.  It  was  painted 
between  1480  and  1490.    Antonello  is  inadequate 


26       Zhc  Hrt  ot  tbe  2)res^en  (Bailer^ 

to  express  deep  emotion.  The  setting  is  more  at- 
tractive than  the  main  figure.  St.  Sebastian's  face 
is  not  very  expressive.  The  mouth  is  open,  yet 
without  the  effect  either  of  speaking  or  of  la- 
menting. 

Cosimo  Tura's  St.  Sebastian  v^as  attributed  orig- 
inally to  Cossa,  and  afterward  to  Costa;  but  it  is 
now  recognized  as  being  a  fine  example  of  Tura's 
work.  Like  all  this  artist's  figures,  the  Saint  is  pain- 
fully mannered  in  his  attitude. 

A  very  richly  coloured  example  of  Garofalo  may 
be  seen  here :  it  portrays  a  Bacchic  procession,  Sile- 
nus  riding  on  a  lion,  while  Ariadne  sits  by  Bacchus 
in  his  triumphal  car,  drawn  by  leopards,  and  ele- 
phants follow  in  stately  progress.  It  is  a  large  and 
important  picture,  but  is  not  entirely  original  with 
Garofalo.  Vasari  tells  us  that  it  was  painted  when 
Garofalo  was  old,  and  was  taken  from  one  of 
Raphael's   drawings. 

The  long-favoured  people  of  Parmegianino  ap- 
pear here  in  the  Madonna  della  Rosa,  so  called  be- 
cause the  Virgin  is  receiving  a  rose  from  the  Divine 
Infant.  This  picture  has  an  interesting  history.  It 
was  probably  painted  by  order  of  Pietro  Aretino, 
one  of  the  greatest  libertines  of  his  time,  and  in- 
tended for  a  Venus  and  Cupid;  later,  when  Parme- 
gianino decided  to  give  it  to  Pope  Clement  VII.,  he 
altered  it,  according  to  his  biographer  Affo,  into 


Barlg  irtalians ;  IRapbael  anD  Correggio  27 

a  Madonna  and  Child!  There  is  also  an  attractive 
copy  here  of  the  Cupid  by  Parmegianino,  in 
Vienna,  in  which  he  is  seen  whittling  out  a  bow 
from  a  branch  of  wood.  This  picture  has  hardly 
any  colour,  except  the  soft  greenish  wings,  and  is 
very  lovely. 

Calvaert  has  made  an  excellent  study  of  ecstasy 
as  he  comprehends  it,  in  his  picture  of  St.  Francis 
and  St.  Dominic  standing  in  highly  dramatic 
trances  upon  beholding  the  Virgin  and  Child  in 
the  clouds.  St.  Dominic  is  provided  with  his  book 
and  lily,  which  he  never  seems  too  busy  to  omit. 

In  Room  C  there  are  various  copies  from 
Raphael  by  fairly  good  artists ;  while  such  pictures 
do  not  add  much  to  the  value  of  the  collection,  it  is 
well  to  have  reproductions  of  famous  works  which 
would  not  otherwise  be  seen.  It  is  not  our  purpose, 
however,  to  devote  time  to  copyists'  productions  in 
this  volume.  There  are  no  original  works  of 
Michelangelo  in  Dresden;  there  is  a  copy  of  his 
brutal  Leda,  painted  pretty  well  by  Rubens,  and 
also  a  few  inconsiderable  copies  here  and  there 
among  the  cabinets.  Sebastiano  del  Piombo's 
Christ  bearing  the  Cross  hangs  in  Madrid;  there 
is  a  copy  of  it  here  by  a  Flemish  artist.  It  was 
acquired  through  an  English  dealer,  in  1874,  at  a 
period  when  pedigrees  were  not  so  carefully  exam- 
ined as  they  are  now. 


28      z\)c  art  ot  tbe  IDresDen  Galleri? 

Mythology  and  martyrology  are  the  chief  sources 
from  which  painters  of  the  Renaissance  derived 
their  subjects.  We  turn  to  Pan  teaching  Olympus 
to  play  the  Flute,  by  Giulio  Romano.  The  con- 
trasting flesh-tints  make  the  young  Olympus  look 
quite  ill. 

In  Giulio  Romano's  selection  of  subject  —  the 
bath  of  the  infant  Saviour  —  the  artist  probably 
intended  to  suggest  a  foregleam  of  the  idea  of 
Christ's  baptism.  There  is  a  certain  intimate  charm 
in  the  human  way  in  which  the  family  has  gathered 
to  watch  this  little  daily  process. 

Among  the  early  Florentines,  Piero  di  Cosimo, 
that  tender  but  eccentric  painter,  is  represented  by 
an  interesting  picture  formerly  ascribed  to  Luca 
Signorelli  —  it  hangs  in  the  large  hall,  D,  and  is 
numbered  20.  On  a  strange  central  rock  two  angels 
are  seated,  singing  out  of  a  book ;  below,  the  Holy 
Family  is  seen,  the  Infant  in  a  pose  which  is  not 
very  childlike,  and  rather  theatrical.  The  face  of 
the  mother  is  pretty,  and  there  are  two  delicious 
little  glimpses  of  flat  landscape  in  the  background 
on  either  side  of  the  rock,  which  add  a  charm  to 
the  whole.  There  is  a  good  deal  of  conventional 
grace  about  the  lines,  and  the  finish  is  clear  and 
glossy,  —  in  fact  it  is  hard,  like  enamel.  The  pic- 
ture is  composed  in  a  circle. 

A  very  glowing  painting  is  that  by  Francia,  of 


Barl^  Utalians ;  IRapbael  an&  Correaaio  29 

the  Baptism  of  Christ.  The  tones  are  Hke  those  in 
some  of  Perugino's  tenderest  studies.  The  figures, 
although,  of  course,  posed  deHberately,  as  are  all 
figures  of  this  school  and  period,  are  of  excep- 
tional grace.  A  curious  fact  is  noticeable,  —  it  may 
have  been  intentional ;  the  feet  of  Christ  are  abso- 
lutely on  the  surface  of  the  water,  as  if  he  were 
standing  on  glass.  The  artist  may  have  had  some 
principle  in  mind,  —  he  may  have  intended  to  con- 
vey the  idea  that  the  sacred  person  of  Our  Lord 
should  be  independent  of  such  earthly  forces  as 
the  power  of  gravitation,  otherwise  it  would  seem 
that  Francia  would  have  indicated  the  natural  play 
of  the  water  about  the  ankles  of  Christ. 

The  pictures  by  Andrea  del  Sarto  in  this  collec- 
tion are  disappointing.  The  most  interesting  is  the 
Abraham  about  to  offer  up  Isaac,  a  large  picture  of 
excellent  composition,  in  which  the  colouring  is 
soft  and  good,  with  the  exception  of  a  hard  scarlet 
in  the  scarf.  The  figure  of  the  boy  is  graceful,  and 
Abraham  rather  grandiloquent.  Isaac's  face  has 
the  characteristic  square-mouthed,  snarling  expres- 
sion, so  usual  in  del  Sarto's  work,  Andrea's  mono- 
gram on  the  stone  in  the  foreground  is  hardly 
needed  when  this  face  is  examined.  It  is  equal  to 
a  signature  in  itself. 

The  Betrothal  of  St.  Catherine,  by  Andrea  del 
Sarto,   is   painfully  strong  in   colour,  almost  raw. 


3°       XTbe  Brt  of  tbe  Dresden  Gallery 

The  effect  and  finish  of  this  picture  is  woolly,  and 
the  legs  of  the  children  are  positively  elephantine. 
It  is  a  genuine  work,  however,  but  not  at  all  pleas- 
ing. Restorers  may  be  responsible  for  the  unfa- 
vourable impression  which  it  makes. 

Dosso  Dossi  and  Garofalo  are  especially  well 
represented  in  Dresden.  Girolamo  da  Carpi  is  also 
to  be  seen  to  advantage.  Dosso's  four  small  pic- 
tures were  all  probably  originally  in  one  room  at 
the  Palace  of  Ferrara.  Probably  there  is  no  gallery 
out  of  Italy  where  he  can  be  studied  to  so  much 
advantage.  Although  the  four  large  canvases  in 
the  salon  D,  on  the  plan,  are  partly  to  be  attributed 
to  the  work  of  his  pupils,  the  design  and  the  colour 
scheme  are  undoubtedly  Dossi's,  and  they  are  won- 
derfully rich  and  decorative  as  a  set  of  pictures. 
The  St.  George  is  almost  copied  from  Raphael's 
in  St.  Petersburg,  but  it  is  altered  in  parts,  and  is 
larger  than  the  original.  This  picture  and  the  one 
near  by,  the  Archangel  Michael  warring  against 
Satan,  were  originally  attributed  to  Penni,  but  have 
now  been  assigned  to  Dosso  Dossi.  The  colouring 
in  Justice  with  the  Scales,  and  in  Peace  with  the 
Torch  and  Horn  of  Plenty,  is  especially  warm. 
There  is  also  a  picture  of  the  Four  Fathers  of  the 
Church  with  St.  Bernardine  of  Siena,  the  Corona- 
tion of  the  Virgin  appearing  in  the  clouds  above. 
That  is,  it  is  called  often  the  Coronation,  but  it  is 


Barl^  Utalians;  IRapbael  ant)  CorreQGio  31 

more  likely  that  it  is  a  representation  of  the  Pre- 
destination of  Mary,  a  legend  which  assumed  that 
the  Virgin  was  predestined  before  her  birth  to  be 
the  mother  of  Christ.  If  the  design  is  examined 
with  this  in  view,  it  will  be  noticed  that  the  Father, 
with  a  triangular  halo,  holds  a  wand  over  the  head 
of  the  Virgin,  who  is  about  to  descend  to  earth. 
There  is  no  crown,  in  spite  of  the  name  usually  as- 
signed to  the  picture.  The  Church  Fathers  appear 
greatly  at  variance  concerning  this  revelation  — 
they  certainly  are  excusable.  Each  is  meditating 
in  a  characteristic  way,  upon  the  mystery.  St. 
Gregory  sits  thinking,  with  pen  and  tablet  ready; 
Ambrose  and  Augustine  are  also  waiting  for  inspi- 
ration. To  St.  Jerome  only  is  vouchsafed  the  vision  : 
he  looks  up  in  rapture  and  awe,  at  the  appearance 
of  God  and  the  Virgin,  in  the  clouds.  This  picture 
should  be  compared  with  No.  155,  which  hangs  in 
the  third  cabinet.  At  first  one  would  say  that  there 
was  no  occasion  for  such  a  comparison,  for  one  is 
a  large  religious  composition  and  the  other  is  a 
portrait  of  an  elderly  gentleman;  but  look  at  the 
hands.  They  are  identical  in  both  pictures,  and 
have  led  the  critics  to  believe  that  this  portrait, 
which  has  long  been  called  the  Physician  of  Cor- 
reggio,  is  really  the  work  of  Dosso  Dossi. 

In  the  figure  of  St.  Michael,  Dosso  Dossi  recalls 
both  the  pictures  by  Raphael  and  Guido  Reni  of 


32       Ube  Brt  of  tbe  Dcesben  Gallery 

this  subject ;  the  figure  of  his  archangel  is  superb, 
and  the  grim  form  at  his  feet  is  a  sort  of  bat- 
winged  Neptune,  with  his  trident  raised  in  self- 
defence.  The  foreshortening  of  St.  Michael  is 
rather  sudden,  but  the  glow  of  rich  colour  covers 
a  multitude  of  minor  sins,  if  they  exist. 

There  is  a  Diana  bending  above  the  Sleeping  En- 
dymion,  hanging  near  the  large  picture,  which  used 
to  be  considered  a  Dossi,  but  is  now  believed  to  be 
the  work  of  Garofalo,  though  the  genuineness  is 
uncertain. 

Of  the  school  of  Dossi  also  is  the  picture  of 
nearly  the  same  size,  called  One  of  the  Hours  with 
the  Four  Steeds  of  Apollo.  It  has  some  character- 
istics of  Garofalo  —  it  may  easily  have  been  exe- 
cuted by  the  same  hand  as  the  Endymion,  for  it  has 
many  points  in  common. 

In  the  forty-second  cabinet  is  a  school  piece  of 
Dossi,  No.  131,  a  young  woman  taking  a  siesta, 
surrounded  by  fantastic  dream  sprites.  This  pic- 
ture is  not  interesting  except  for  its  marvellous  blue 
and  green  draperies. 

Garofalo's  Minerva  and  Neptune,  dated  15 12,  is 
an  example  of  a  good  period  of  this  master.  It 
hangs  OH  the  same  wall  with  the  chief  Dosso 
Dossis.  Among  the  works  attributed  to  Garofalo 
is  a  good  example  of  his  decline,  in  No.  134,  in 
which  St.  Peter,  St.  Bernard  of  Clairvaux,  and  St. 


learls  Utaltans ;  IRapbael  an^  Correggto  33 

George  are  seen  with  the  Virgin  in  the  sky  above. 
The  picture  was  transferred  from  panel  to  canvas 
in  1838.  It  was  painted  for  the  Carthusians  of 
Ferrara,  in  1530,  and  therefore  some  are  incHned 
to  consider  the  saint  in  the  foreground  to  be  St. 
Bruno,  the  patron  of  the  order,  rather  than  St.  Ber- 
nard. In  another  good  Garofalo,  Venus  is  seen 
visiting  Mars,  begging  for  his  chariot,  she  having 
been  wounded  in  the  battle  of  Troy.  Mars  is  a 
well-appointed  sixteenth-century  knight  in  armour, 
who  would  cause  "  Homeric  laughter !  " 

A  pretty  composition  is  the  Virgin  giving  the 
infant  Saviour  to  St.  Cecilia,  who  kneels  at  the 
side,  with  various  musical  instruments  scattered  on 
the  ground.  It  may  be  a  school  work,  but  came 
from  Modena  in  1746,  among  the  valuable  paint- 
ings which  had  belonged  to  Prince  Ignatio  Cesare. 
St.  Bernardine  of  Siena  and  St.  Anthony  of  Padua 
are  seen  behind  St.  Cecilia,  while  a  magnificent  fig- 
ure of  St.  Geminianus  is  seated,  at  the  other  side, 
in  cope  and  mitre.  St.  Geminianus  was  the  patron 
of  Modena,  and  was  regarded  as  having  saved  the 
Cathedral  from  being  destroyed  by  a  flood,  after 
his  death.  His  attribute  in  art  is  a  model  of  a 
church. 

Mythological  subjects  by  Garofalo  are  not  very 
common;  one,  the  Neptune  and  Minerva,  just  al- 


34      Ube  Brt  of  tbe  H)res^en  Gallenj 

luded  to,  shows  traces  of  the  influence  of  Costa, 
and  is  dated  15 12. 

In  No.  142,  Opportunity,  the  object  was  to  por- 
tray the  rapid  flight  of  Opportunity,  and  the  fact 
that  when  it  passes,  Repentance  is  found  to  be  com- 
ing after.  It  is  painted  by  Girolamo  da  Carpi,  who 
was  a  pupil  of  Garofalo. 

As  we  stand  and  look  upon  that  significant  line 
of  Correggio's  pictures  hanging  in  this  hall,  it 
seems  as  if  we  had  a  mental  history  of  Correggio 
before  us.  The  first  —  the  lovely  Madonna  of  St. 
Francis  —  was  painted  when  Correggio  was  only 
twenty,  and  it  has  the  restraint  and  timidity  of  the 
spring,  —  the  beginning,  —  yet  with  all  its  promise, 
too.  Some  pious  souls  have  objected  to  the  Ma- 
donna as  having  too  much  coquetry  in  her  expres- 
sion, and  perhaps  if  one  were  looking  for  trouble, 
one  might  admit  that  her  benediction  and  smile 
must  be  extremely  gratifying  to  the  remarkably 
handsome  young  monk,  —  if  his  ecstasy  and  fresh 
beauty  were  removed,  and  the  figure  of  an  old, 
thin,  weather-beaten  saint  substituted,  I  have  no 
doubt  that  the  critics  would  never  have  noticed  that 
Mary's  regard  was  too  tender. 

The  Madonna  of  St.  Francis  was  painted  in 
1 5 14,  for  the  Franciscans  of  the  town  of  Correggio. 
When  the  Duke  of  Modena  took  it  away  in  1638, 
the  citizens  arose  in  revolt,  and  a  genuine  riot  en- 


CORREGGIO.  —  MADONNA    OF    ST.    f  RANCIS 


Barlp  Iftalians;  IRapbael  an&  Corregoio  35 

sued.  All  the  early  influences  —  of  Costa,  Man- 
tegna,  and  Leonardo  —  may  be  traced  in  it ;  sug- 
gestions of  Francia  and  of  Perugino  may  also  be 
found.  The  soaring  cherubs  in  this  picture  look 
as  if  they  might  have  hooks  in  their  backs,  and  be 
swung  on  threads,  and  they  give  the  sensation 
of  going  round  and  round  after  each  other.  This 
was  long  supposed  to  be  the  master's  earliest  paint- 
ing, but  nearly  a  dozen  early  works  were  really 
executed  before  it.  Youth  and  enthusiasm,  pagan 
love  for  pure  beauty  for  its  own  sake,  —  these 
qualities  pervade  the  lovely  picture  of  the  Madonna 
of  St.  Francis.  It  is  more  formal  in  its  arrange- 
ment than  the  riper  picture,  the  Madonna  of  St. 
Roch,  which  shows  more  of  the  spirit  of  noon,  — 
of  summer,  —  of  maturity. 

There  is  less  piquancy  in  the  face  of  the  Virgin 
in  the  Madonna  with  St.  Roch  and  St.  Sebastian. 
There  is  less  of  that  arch  quality  which  reminds  us 
of  Leonardo.  The  Madonna  is  more  placid,  and 
more  maternal.  Every  one  else  in  the  composition 
seems  to  be  working  hard.  It  lacks  repose.  It  has 
lost  the  youthful  timidity  and  reserve,  and  is  full 
of  action,  —  not  as  restful  as  the  earlier  painting. 
St.  Sebastian  is  writing  in  mixed  ecstasies  of  pain 
and  joy;  St.  Roch  is  sleeping  heavily  in  an  uncom- 
fortable pose,  suggestive  of  nightmare,  and  St. 
Geminianus,   who   has   presented   his   architectural 


36      Ube  art  of  tbe  H)resben  (Ballerp 

model  to  the  heavenly  group,  is  turning  round  to 
the  spectator,  pointing  upward  with  one  hand  and 
downward  with  the  other,  as  if  he  were  making 
a  speech,  and  calling  the  attention  of  the  onlooker 
to  the  Celestial  Vision.  Angels  balance  themselves 
in  most  precarious  attitudes,  and  one  tiny  cherub 
is  riding  astride  on  a  small  cloud  with  all  the  zest 
of  a  little  boy  "  playing  horse."  The  colour,  too, 
is  rampant  and  active ;  the  central  light  is  red,  grad- 
ing into  a  yellow  sky  above  and  a  yellow  robe 
below,  making  the  tones  in  the  other  earlier  picture 
look  very  cool  by  contrast. 

In  the  Nativity,  or  Holy  Night,  we  have  the 
evening  glow,  —  still,  dark,  and  brooding ;  Cor- 
reggio  was  an  old  man  when  he  painted  this.  The 
lines  are  clearer  than  in  the  other  pictures.  It  has 
the  restraint  of  age  instead  of  the  timidity  of  youth. 
The  light  streaming  outward,  from  the  sweet,  hu- 
man little  baby  lying  on  the  straw,  is  diffused  in  a 
balmy  effulgence  on  the  salient  points  of  the  com- 
position, leaving  the  rest  in  mystery  and  shadow. 
Woltmann  and  Woermann  say  of  the  Holy  Night : 
"  The  types,  with  the  exception  of  the  Virgin,  are 
commonplace;  the  composition  lacks  grace  and 
charm;  marvellous  effect  is  produced  solely  by  the 
treatment  of  the  light,  which  proceeds  from  the 
person  of  the  sacred  Infant,  and  illumines  the  by- 
standers, while  the  distant  landscape  is  lighted  by 


Barlp  Utalians;  IRapbael  an&  CorregGio  37 

dawn."  The  picture  was  executed  in  1530,  for  the 
Chapel  of  St.  Prospero  in  Reggio.  The  Madonna 
is  a  young  mother  tending  her  baby;  the  shepherds 
and  Joseph  are  simple  country  people;  there  is 
nothing  hierarchic  even  about  the  angels.  Nothing 
of  the  formalism  of  the  early  piety  of  art  remains. 
Vasari  particularly  admires  the  angels,  and  ob- 
serves that  they  hardly  seem  to  have  been  painted, 
but  rather  "  showered  down  from  heaven."  The 
expression  on  the  face  of  the  maid  who  looks  up 
at  the  shepherd  has  been  objected  to,  on  the  ground 
of  portraying  a  "feeble  rapture;"  and  the  angels 
in  the  sky  above  have  been  accused  of  appear- 
ing to  suffer  from  aerial  cramp.  The  real  study  of 
the  picture  is  in  its  lighting.  The  effulgence  is  not 
intended  to  be  exactly  like  any  known  light.  It 
merges  into  the  distant  dawn,  and  the  line  of  de- 
markation  is  skilfully  handled.  There  is  a  bit  of 
the  handwriting  of  Correggio  relating  to  the  pic- 
ture of  the  Nativity.  While  at  work  upon  it,  he 
received  his  payment  in  instalments.  One  of  these 
partial  payments  amounted  to  "  forty  pounds  of 
ancient  currency,"  and  on  the  receipt  for  this  sum, 
signed  in  1522,  these  words  are  written:  "I,  An- 
tonio Lieto  of  Correggio,  declare  that  I  received 
the  sum  mentioned  on  the  day  and  in  the  year 
aforesaid,  in  token  of  which  I  have  written  this 
with  my  own  hand." 


38       TLhc  Brt  ot  tbe  S)res^en  (Bailer^ 

It  is  almost  a  pity  that  such  a  hamionious  se- 
quence of  dawn,  noon,  and  evening,  as  are  typified 
by  these  three  pictures,  the  Madonna  of  St.  Francis, 
the  Madonna  of  St.  Sebastian,  and  the  Holy  Night, 
should  be  intruded  upon  by  the  florid  and  extrava- 
gant Madonna  of  St.  George,  which  is  the  last 
altar-piece  by  the  master,  and  is  overblown  and 
mannered.  Here  we  have  a  decided  decadence;  St. 
George,  as  a  Roman  soldier,  strident  and  confident, 
places  his  hand  on  his  hip,  and  looks  over  his  shoul- 
der to  see — 'what?  To  inquire  if  people  are  notic- 
ing the  Madonna  and  Child,  or  to  see  who  is  looking 
at  him?  The  attitude  can  be  interpreted  either 
way.  The  sense  of  reverence  is  quite  subordinate. 
St.  John  the  Baptist  is  a  fat  and  well-liking  young 
faun,  who  must  have  found  great  plenty  of  locusts 
and  wild  honey  in  his  desert.  The  colour  is  soft 
and  glowing,  and  the  technique  admirable.  But  the 
Greek  pagan  predominates  over  the  Christian  at 
every  point.  Of  the  Cupid-like  cherubs  who  oc- 
cupy the  foreground,  —  certainly  among  the  most 
vital  and  charming  of  Correggio's  creations,  — 
Guido  Reni  inquired,  some  years  after  seeing  them, 
if  they  were  still  there?  "For,"  he  added,  "they 
were  so  lifelike  that  it  seems  as  if  they  must  have 
grown  up  by  this  time!  " 

Correggio  was  not  a  simple,  self-made  boy  of 
humble  origin,  as  has  been  thought  by  some;  there 


Barlp  irtalians ;  1Rapf3ael  an&  Corregato  39 

is  evidence  that  he  was  a  protege  of  the  wife  of  the 
Lord  of  Correggio,  the  cultivated  Veronica  Gam- 
bara.  In  this  way  the  boy  had  the  best  artistic 
training  possible  to  one  of  his  ingenuous  tempera- 
ment, surrounded  by  the  refined  delights  of  a  small 
court,  in  one  of  the  most  select  little  coteries  of  the 
Renaissance. 

Correggio's  life  was  uneventful,  and  he  lived  in 
a  town  instead  of  a  city.  He  was  not  in  the  midst 
of  turmoil  and  quarrels,  he  did  not  live  where  jeal- 
ous artists  were  constantly  making  life  hard  for 
him,  and  where  the  unrestrained  passions  of  the 
day  were  wreaked  all  about  him ;  his  buoyant  nature 
could  expand  with  a  pleasant  optimism,  and  he  had 
little  to  disturb  the  refined  pastoral  tendencies  of 
his  nature. 

There  are  many  apocryphal  stories  about  Cor- 
reggio  and  his  witty  sayings :  they  are  not  to 
be  regarded  as  gospel  truth,  but  it  is  amusing  to 
hear  that  when  the  Church  dignitaries  at  Parma, 
where  he  did  much  of  his  most  remarkable  work, 
objected  to  the  amount  charged  for  his  incompa- 
rable frescoes.  Correggio  replied,  proudly,  "  Turn 
your  cupola  upside  down,  and  fill  it  with  gold,  and 
even  then  it  will  not  contain  the  true  value  of  the 
pictures !  "    Correggio  spent  many  years  in  Parma. 

"  Putti  "  —  those  amalgamations  of  cherub- 
child-and-Cupid  —  are    especially     in    Correggio's 


40      Ube  Hrt  ot  tbe  Dresden  Gallery 

line;  he  may  be  considered  responsible  for  the  pre- 
dominance of  this  form  in  the  Renaissance.  Putti 
are  almost  a  trade-mark  of  the  period.  No  artist 
could  resist  introducing  them. 

Correggio  never  painted  a  portrait,  even  of  him- 
self. His  creations  were  mental,  and  had  only  the 
life  of  his  brimming  imagination.  He  was  a  real 
and  natural  pagan.  There  was  no  conscious  ef- 
fort at  classic  Renaissance  about  him;  he  was  born 
with  the  free  Greek  spirit,  and  his  life,  passed 
largely  in  small  towns  where  he  was  brought  little 
in  touch  with  the  pedantic  dilettantism  of  his  times, 
fostered  this  light-hearted  tendency.  His  works 
are  lyrical,  not  epic,  nor  vast,  nor  dramatic,  nor  ter- 
rible in  any  way.  He  was  nearer  to  Sappho  than 
to  Homer, 

Correggio  was  unique  in  his  power  to  hypnotize 
us  with  a  smile  or  a  sentimental,  languishing  pose. 
In  his  followers  these  qualities  become  mere  weak, 
intentional  simpering,  and  in  Carlo  Dolci,  Sassofer- 
rato,  and  others,  we  recognize  the  difference  be- 
tween the  true  myth  and  the  planned  fairy-tale. 
In  literature  there  are  few  figures  who  stand  in  the 
same  relation  to  their  art  that  he  did  to  painting. 
Shelley  and  Keats  are  among  these,  and  they  were 
equally  unfortunate  in  their  followers. 

It  is  interesting  to  compare  Correggio's  St.  Fran- 
cis with  the  Baptism  of  Christ  by  Francia.     It  is 


Barlp  Utalians ;  IRapbael  ant)  Correogio  41 

evident  that  some  of  the  same  spirit  is  in  both.  It 
has  been  pointed  out  by  Berenson  that  the  eyes  are 
strikingly  ahke  in  both  pictures,  and  the  colour 
scheme  is  similar. 

It  is  believed  that  Correggio's  first  teacher  was 
Bianchi,  whom  he  left  in  1508,  going  to  Bologna, 
where  he  stayed  and  may  have  studied  with  Francia 
and  Costa.  It  is  likely,  too,  that  he  went  to  Mantua 
with  Costa  in  the  following  year,  where  he  could 
have  had  ample  opportunity  for  the  study  of  Man- 
tegna  and  Dossi.  His  occasional  similarity  to  Lotto 
may  be  accounted  for  by  a  visit  to  Venice.  There 
is  also  a  strange  likeness  to  Raphael  in  Correggio's 
St.  Catherine;  she  is  much  like  the  same  saint  with 
her  wheel  in  the  National  Gallery  in  London.  The 
St.  John,  too,  is  a  good  deal  like  the  St.  John  in  the 
Madonna  da  Foligno  in  Rome.  Both  of  these  pic- 
tures by  Raphael  were  somewhat  influenced  by  his 
teacher,  Timoteo  Viti,  and  Correggio  may  easily 
have  come  under  the  same  spell  through  other  fol- 
lowers of  Viti,  although  he  could  not  have  learnt 
of  Raphael.  Morelli  believes  him  to  have  been  in- 
fluenced by  Lotto;  this  Berenson  denies. 

Correggio  was  but  forty  when  he  died,  in  1535. 
A  remarkable  testimony  to  the  fact  that  he  was  not 
fully  appreciated  during  his  lifetime,  is  the  circum- 
stance that  he  was  buried  under  a  simple  wooden 
slab,  inscribed,  "  Antonius  de  Allegris,  Pictor;  "  not 


42       Xlbe  Brt  of  tbe  Dres^en  (Bailer^ 

for  a  century  after  his  death  was  this  replaced  by 
a  stone. 

The  world  in  which  Correggio  moved  and  had 
what  might  be  called  almost  an  astral  existence, 
was  the  world  of  imagination.  Dominated  by  a 
soft,  voluptuous  love  for  light  and  delicate  forms, 
it  was  his  ability  to  paint  realistic  pictures  of  these 
unreal  phantoms  which  made  him  a  unique  magi- 
cian. His  art,  as  Symonds  has  said,  excels  in 
"  artless  grace  and  melodious  tenderness."  It  is 
exotic;  it  should  not  be  judged  by  those  standards 
by  which  other  productions  are  tested. 


CHAPTER    II. 


THE    GREAT    VENETIANS 


With  the  Renaissance  there  developed  a  reali- 
zation of  the  importance  of  details  in  pictures.  Art- 
ists began  to  see  that  if  their  paintings  were  to  have 
verisimilitude,  the  usual  accessories  of  a  scene  must 
appear  in  the  picture.  Not  that  these  details  were 
to  be  conspicuous,  but  it  was  found  that  if  they 
were  omitted  their  absence  was  felt.  Nature  had 
not  been  painted  as  it  really  was :  during  the  early 
centuries  it  was  fomially  arranged  into  rural  scenic 
efifects;  but  the  study  of  nature  in  the  modern 
sense,  where  a  landscape  is  practically  a  portrait 
of  a  place,  had  not  developed.  When  I  say  portrait, 
I  mean  to  use  the  word  with  the  same  distinction 
that  we  make  between  a  photograph  and  a  portrait 
of  a  person.  I  mean  a  scene  treated  with  an  appre- 
hension of  its  characteristics,  and  a  demonstration 
of  the  atmosphere  and  sentiment  of  the  scene  —  not 
simply  a  transcript  of  the  number  of  trees  to  be 
seen,  or  the  height  of  certain  hills.  It  takes  just  as 
much  interpretation  and  comprehension  to  paint  a 

43 


44      Zbc  Hrt  of  tbe  2Drest)en  (Bailer^ 

true  portrait  of  a  place  as  it  does  to  paint  a  true 
likeness  of  a  person. 

Until  Titian's  day  landscape  art  had  been  very 
slight;  during  the  Middle  Ages  it  was  positively 
unsafe  for  citizens  to  wander  outside  of  town  walls, 
and  therefore  the  artists  and  their  patrons  knew 
little  of  the  actual  communion  with  nature  which 
made  the  country  estates  and  gardens  of  the  Renais- 
sance so  attractive.  Landscape  had  been  employed 
as  backgroimd  where  subjects  demanded  it,  but  had 
not  flourished  as  an  art. 

The  works  of  Jacopo  de'  Barbari  are  to  be  seen 
in  the  second  cabinet,  in  the  half-figures  of  two 
saints,  Catherine  and  Barbara ;  also  in  the  first  cab- 
inet, the  Saviour  in  the  act  of  blessing.  No.  57, 
has  now  been  assigned  to  the  same  artist,  as  well  as 
No.  59  A,  which  hangs  in  the  farthest  cabinet  on  the 
ground  floor,  and  which  represents  Galatea  riding 
on  a  dolphin.  The  reasons  for  deciding  upon  the 
authorship  of  these  pictures  are  various;  critics  see 
certain  unmistakable  signs  of  the  style  of  Jacopo 
in  all  of  them.  Among  other  individual  marks 
may  be  noted  the  extreme  roundness  of  the  heads, 
the  bluntness  of  the  thumbs,  the  prominence  of  the 
upper  eyelids,  and  the  fact  that  the  lips  are  apart. 

An  intensely  blue  spot  demands  attention  in  the 
second  cabinet;  it  is  a  tenderly  finished  Adoration 
of  the  Infant  Christ  by  Girolamo  da  Santa  Croce, 


Ubc  6reat  Venetians  4S 

a  painter  who  lived  in  Venice  between   15 19  and 

1549- 

Titian's  Madonna  and  Saints  hangs  in  Hall  D, 
although  most  of  the  other  works  of  Titian  are  in 
the  next  apartment.  Both  the  Aladonna  and  Child 
are  most  lovely,  and  the  painting  of  the  whites  in 
the  draperies  of  the  Virgin  and  the  Magdalen,  who 
stands  in  an  attitude  of  classic  grace  opposite  her, 
is  thoroughly  characteristic  of  Titian's  finest  early 
work.  The  dark  shadowy  head  of  St.  Paul,  outlined 
sharply  against  the  lucid  sky,  is  to  be  noted  as 
a  superb  foil  for  the  stately  beauty  of  the  Magdalen. 
The  Baptist  is  a  rugged  figure  at  the  left,  with 
magnificent  biceps  and  forearm,  and  his  heavy 
brown  hand  clasping  the  delicate  arm  of  the  infant 
Saviour  is  another  instance  of  clever  juxtaposition 
of  opposed  types.  It  was  painted  early,  in  the  same 
period  as  the  Assumption  of  the  Virgin  in  Venice, 
between  15 14  and  1520.  The  picture  was  executed 
rapidly,  painted  in  a  thin  medium  over  a  ground 
of  white  gesso.  It  has  been  thought  that  the  types 
of  St.  John  and  St.  Paul  are  more  like  Sebastian  del 
Piombo  than  Titian.  It  was  originally  in  the  Casa 
Grimani  in  Venice. 

Titian's  religion  was  not  a  practical  personal 
aspiration;  he  had  no  idea  of  suggesting  the  inti- 
mate communings  of  a  soul  with  its  creator;  his 
conception  of  religion  was  a  magnificent  pageant 


4(i      TLbc  Hrt  ot  tbe  BresOen  Gallerp 

and  ritual,  and  as  such  he  has  treated  it.  Paolo 
Veronese  has  done  this  even  more;  he  has  carried 
it  to  a  more  spectacular  extreme,  and  his  pictures 
are  simply  scenes  of  Venetian  gorgeousness. 

The  most  precious  Titian  here  is  the  Tribute 
Money,  one  of  the  master's  noblest  works,  painted 
in  the  manner  derived  from  early  Flemish  study. 
It  hangs  in  the  second  cabinet.  The  signature, 
"  Ticianus  F.,"  is  to  be  seen  on  the  open  collar  of 
the  Pharisee  who  is  trying  to  entrap  Jesus  by  ask- 
ing him  if  it  be  lawful  to  pay  tribute  unto  Caesar. 
Our  Lord  is  portrayed  at  the  moment  when,  point- 
ing to  the  coin,  he  asks,  "  Whose  image  and  super- 
scription hath  it?"  The  wonderfully  maintained 
contrast  between  the  two  men,  —  Christ,  noble, 
serene,  yet  powerful  and  masculine,  and  the  wrin- 
kled, sly  face  opposed  to  his,  —  the  dark  clutching 
hand  of  the  Pharisee  and  the  slender  hand  full  of 
nerve  and  action,  which  is  near  it,  —  the  fine  red 
robe  touching  the  coarse  shirt  of  the  vulgarian,  — 
all  these  denote  a  keen  apprehension  of  the  actual 
scene,  and  yet  there  is  no  lack  of  devotional  feeling. 
The  picture  hung  for  many  years  in  the  palace  of 
the  Duke  of  Ferrara,  but  there  is  no  actual  record 
that  it  was  ordered  originally  by  him.  It  is  a  curi- 
ous coincidence,  however,  that  on  the  coins  of  this 
Duke  were  inscribed  the  words,  "  Render  unto 
Caesar  the  things  that  are  Caesar's  and  unto  God 


TITIAN.  TRIBUTE    MONEY 


Ube  Great  l^enetians  47 

the  things  that  are  God's."  The  hands  in  this  pic- 
ture have  so  much  expressive  action  that  they  almost 
supply  the  place  of  words. 

In  1655  Scanelli  wrote  a  gossipy  set  of  memoirs 
called  "  Microcosmo."  He  there  tells  of  certain 
Germans  who  visited  Titian's  studio  in  Venice,  and 
went  away  wagging  their  heads,  maintaining  that 
there  was  but  one  real  artist,  who  knew  how  to 
finish  a  picture :  Albrecht  Diirer.  Titian  was 
rather  annoyed  at  their  bigotry  bred  of  ignorance, 
exclaiming  that,  had  he  thought  that  extreme  finish 
were  the  end  and  aim  of  art,  he  could  have  pursued 
it  equally  well  in  that  direction.  Partly  to  prove 
that  he  could  do  this,  and  that,  in  spite  of  the  fact 
that  he  preferred  a  broader  style,  he  was  able  to 
demonstrate  that  "  the  subtlest  detail  might  be 
compassed  without  sacrifice  of  breadth,"  he  painted 
this  picture  of  Christ  and  the  Tribute  Money.  He 
had  the  satisfaction,  too,  of  hearing  the  ambassador 
of  Charles  V.,  at  the  court  of  Ferrara,  wonder  that 
any  one  should  be  able  to  rival  Diirer  thus  on  his 
own  ground! 

Titian  was  highly  prized  in  Spain.  Once,  when 
there  was  a  fire  raging  in  the  Pardo,  Philip  HI. 
cried,  "  Is  the  Antiope  of  Titian  saved  ?  "  And, 
upon  being  reassured,  observed,  that  other  pictures 
could  be  replaced  by  others  equally  good,  but  that 
a  Titian  was  priceless. 


48       XTbe  Hrt  of  tbe  2)res^en  Gallery 

Venice  was  the  first  Italian  city  to  realize  the 
value  which  portraits  would  have  for  future  gen- 
erations, and  the  Venetians  made  it  a  point  to  have 
their  great  men  —  rulers,  statesmen,  and  benefac- 
tors —  painted  by  the  best  artists.  Portraits  of  the 
Doges  were  all  ranged  about  the  Great  Hall  of 
Council  in  the  Ducal  Palace.  Then  it  began  to  be 
fashionable  to  paint  heroes  and  beauties  as  saints, 
and  to  introduce  likenesses  of  prominent  citizens 
into  altar-pieces.  The  first  Italian  idea  of  por- 
traiture was  sculptural;  busts  were  made  as  like- 
nesses, but  the  colour  was  lacking,  and  they  were 
not  really  satisfactory.  Then  Donatello  thought  of 
tinting  these  portrait  busts  according  to  nature,  but 
the  effect  was  uncanny,  and  by  degrees  the  painters 
realized  that  portraiture  was  in  their  line  rather 
than  in  that  of  the  sculptors,  and  the  great  insti- 
tution of  modern  art  —  the  painted  portrait  —  came 
and  remained. 

No  more  enchanting  series  of  portraits  hangs  in 
any  gallery  than  those  of  Titian  in  this  hall,  E,  at 
Dresden.  The  progress  of  colouring,  from  one  to 
the  other,  is  beautiful  and  satisfying.  Lavinia  as 
a  bride,  in  soft  and  glowing  white,  Lavinia  as  a 
matron,  in  deep  rich  green :  with  the  portrait  of 
a  lady  in  a  strange  strawberry  pink  gown  coming 
between  them,  and  at  one  side,  the  portrait  of  a 
young  girl  with  a  vase,   all  in  peachy  gray,  —  it 


Ube  Great  IDenetians  49 

would  be  impossible  to  plan  a  more  delicious  colour 
scheme  than  this  part  of  the  wall. 

The  girl  with  the  fan  is  entirely  the  work  of  the 
master  himself.  Flag-fans  were  only  carried  by 
brides,  so  we  know  that  this  represents  Lavinia 
just  after  her  marriage,  the  portrait  having  been 
painted  upon  Titian's  return  from  Rome.  The 
little  pearls  twisted  in  the  hair  are  charmingly  con- 
trived, and  the  soft  texture  of  the  pearl  necklace 
contrasts  exquisitely  with  Lavinia's  fair  skin.  The 
opposing  textures  of  damask  and  gauze,  too,  are 
painted  with  great  realism.  The  portrait  came 
among  the  heirlooms  of  the  d'Estes,  from  Modena, 
Here  the  pretty  Lavinia  is  quite  suggestive  of  her 
later  portrait  in  Berlin,  where  she  appears  bearing 
aloft  a  dish  of  fruit  in  her  sturdy  arms.  The  same 
stalwart  short-waisted  appearance  is  in  both  the  like- 
nesses, also.  In  the  more  mature  portrait,  the  lines 
of  the  figure  are  similar  —  the  outlines  are  farther 
apart,  but  the  curves  are  on  the  same  plan ! 

No.  171  portrays  the  same  daughter  of  Titian  as 
a  matron.  In  this  case  she  carries  a  feather  fan,  sig- 
nifying a  noble  lady  of  Venice.  Qiarles  V.  having 
created  Titian  a  count,  she  would  have  been  entitled 
to  carry  such  a  fan. 

Near  by  hangs  a  Holy  Family,  of  which  the 
authenticity  is  questioned,  but  which  has  charm, 
Morelli  pronounces  it  genuine,  one  of  Titian's  more 


50       XTbe  Brt  ot  tbe  BresDen  Gallery 

mature  works,  but  restored.  Where  the  luminous 
green  shines  so  lustrously  the  effect  is  that  of  the 
colour  being  laid  upon  gold.  The  family  of  the 
Donor,  a  man,  woman,  and  boy,  appear  in  this  pic- 
ture, which  rather  lacks  aerial  perspective,  espe- 
cially in  the  cloudy  sky  in  the  background,  which 
obtrudes  itself  unduly,  and  might  be  intended  for 
snow-clad  mountains.  The  painting  is  rather  flat, 
and  there  is  no  blending  of  the  edges  such  as 
Titian's  work  usually  shows.  It  is  possible  that  it 
is  by  another  hand,  but  the  facial  types  of  the  Holy 
Family  are  like  those  of  Titian.  The  others,  being 
portraits,   have   fewer  distinguishing  marks. 

There  is  a  very  good  copy  of  Venus  and  the  Lute 
Player  from  Madrid.  It  has  been  supposed  a  por- 
trait of  the  Princess  of  Eboli,  and  the  lute-player 
to  represent  Philip  II.,  but  it  is  more  likely  that 
it  is  a  Venetian  noble  and  his  mistress.  The  rest 
of  the  copies,  which  are  numerous,  are  unimportant, 
though  doubtless  interesting  to  those  who  can  never 
see  the  originals. 

Titian  had  no  idea  of  exploiting  human  anatomy. 
He  liked  a  just  and  sufficient  veil  of  flesh,  and  super- 
imposed it  over  the  bony  structure  of  his  person- 
ages with  lavish  intention.  Neither  did  he  care  to 
vie  with  Michelangelo  in  contorting  the  muscles  as 
far  and  as  curiously  as  was  consistent  with  life; 
he  understood  the  value  of  repose,  and  generally 


Xlbe  Great  Venetians  51 

preferred  to  portray  more  tranquil  positions  of  the 
human  frame. 

Titian's  Man  with  a  Pahn  is  an  interesting  por- 
trait ;  one  wonders  whom  it  represents.  It  was  orig- 
inahy  inscribed  as  a  portrait  of  Pietro  Aretino,  but 
the  inscription  was  discovered  to  be  a  forgery,  and 
it  was  already  evident  from  the  lack  of  likeness  that 
it  certainly  was  not  intended  for  Aretino.  Painted 
out,  but  traceable,  in  the  background,  there  is  the 
faint  line  of  a  nimbus  about  the  head.  What  a 
curious  adjunct  to  a  portrait!  One  feels  inclined 
to  suggest  that  it  may  have  been  Titian's  attempt 
at  a  saint,  with  the  palm  of  martyrdom,  especially 
as  there  are  some  small  knives  on  the  window-sill, 
which  might  be  considered  as  attributes!  This  is 
idle  conjecture,  however.  This  picture  is  now 
signed,  as  was  discovered  when  the  false  signature 
was  removed,  "  MDLXI.  .  .  .  Titianus  Pictor  ct 
^ques  Cccsaris."  It  was  painted  when  Titian  was 
eighty-four  years  of  age. 

If  one  wishes  to  learn  what  kind  of  a  life  Titian 
lived,  it  is  only  necessary  to  look  through  some  con- 
temporary documents  and  one  finds  a  letter  written 
by  Priscianese,  who  in  1540  was  visiting  Venice, 
to  a  friend  in  Rome.  He  relates  how  he  was  invited 
to  a  garden-party  at  Titian's  home,  and  the  descrip- 
tion is  so  charming  that  it  would  be  a  pity  not  to 
quote    it :    "  Before   the   tables   were  set   out,"   he 


52      Ubc  Hrt  ot  tbe  S)re6t>en  (Ballerp 

writes,  "  we  spent  the  time  in  looking  at  the  Hvely 
figures  in  the  excellent  pictures  of  which  the  house 
was  full,  and  in  discussing  the  real  beauty  and 
charm  of  the  garden,  with  singular  pleasure  and  ad- 
miration expressed  by  all  of  us.  It  is  situated  in  the 
extreme  part  of  Venice,  upon  the  sea,  and  from  it 
one  sees  the  pretty  little  island  of  Murano  and  other 
beautiful  places.  This  part  of  the  sea,  as  soon  as 
the  sun  went  down,  swarmed  with  gondolas  adorned 
with  beautiful  women,  and  resounded  with  the 
varied  harmony  and  music  of  voices  and  instruments 
which  till  midnight  accompanied  our  delightful 
supper.  .  .  .  Besides  the  most  delicate  viands  and 
precious  wines,  there  were  all  those  pleasures  and 
amusements  that  are  suited  to  the  season,  the  guests, 
and  the  feast." 

When  Titian  was  ninety-nine  years  old  and  near 
his  death,  he  visited  the  monks  of  the  Frari,  and 
spoke  to  them  in  words  such  as  these :  ''  The  moun- 
tains of  Cadore  are  dear  to  me :  the  rushing  waters 
of  the  Pieve  are  dear  to  me  :  and  the  murmur  of  the 
wind  in  the  pine-trees  in  my  far-away  home.  But 
bury  me  not  there.  Promise  to  bury  m.e  here,  in 
the  city  where  I  have  done  my  life's  work,  bury  me 
in  this  church,  where  first  I  was  successful,  and  I 
will  live  on  that  promise  long  enough  to  paint  you 
yet  another  Christ  —  the  Christ  of  pity!  It  shall 
be  nearer  to  the  real  Christ  than  any  I  have  yet 


Zbc  Great  Venetians  S3 

painted,  for  I  am  the  nearer  to  him  myself!  "  Titian 
did  not  live  to  finish  his  picture,  but  the  monks  re- 
membered their  promise,  and  when  he  died,  of  the 
plague,  he  was  buried  as  he  had  requested,  in  the 
Frari. 

One  of  the  most  famous  and  beautiful  Giorgiones 
in  the  world  may  be  seen  in  Dresden ;  the  Venus 
Sleeping,  in  a  Rich  Landscape.  It  was  originally 
supposed  to  be  a  Titian,  and  seems  to  be  from  the 
same  model  as  his  Bella.  This  lovely  being  is  very 
mortal  —  she  is  not  a  goddess.  Dresden  was  once 
supposed  to  be  rich  in  Giorgiones.  Jacob  saluting 
Rachel,  by  Palma  Vecchio  (No.  192  in  the  large 
room  D),  used  to  be  ascribed  to  him,  and  No.  210, 
the  Adoration  of  the  Shepherds,  by  Bonifazio 
Veronese,  was  also  given  to  him.  This  is  in  the 
second  cabinet.  The  picture  of  a  man  embracing 
a  girl,  No.  221,  in  the  first  cabinet,  is  now  brought 
in  question,  and  is  not  given  definitely  to  any 
painter,  but  there  is  some  reason  to  think  that  it 
may  be  Domenico  Mancini.  It  is  somewhat  remi- 
niscent of  his  work.  This  picture  was  formerly  re- 
garded as  a  Giorgione,  as  was  also  the  portrait  of 
Pietro  Aretino,  of  uncertain  authorship,  wdiich 
hangs  in  the  second  cabinet.  No.  186,  in  the  forty- 
first  cabinet,  used  to  be  catalogued  as  a  Giorgione, 
but  it  is  more  likely  a  copy  or  school  piece.  The 
only  absolutely  attested  Giorgione  in  Dresden,  then. 


54      XT  be  Hrt  ot  tbe  BresDen  Wallers 

is  the  beautiful  Sleeping  Venus,  which  occupies  an 
important  place  in  the  large  salon  E. 

This  picture,  it  is  true,  was  probably  finished  by 
Titian,  but  it  is  the  same  painting  referred  to  by 
Ridolfi,  hanging  in  his  day  in  the  Casa  Marcella  in 
Rome,  and  Morelli  has  established  its  authenticity 
by  various  tests,  so  that  it  is  now  accepted  by  all 
the  leading  critics,  although  it  was  bought  for  a 
Titian.  Ridolfi  alludes  to  it  thus :  "  An  exquisite 
nude  figure  of  Venus  sleeping  is  in  the  Casa  Mar- 
cella, and  at  her  feet  is  Cupid  holding  a  little  bird, 
which  (Cupid)  was  finished  by  Titian."  At  first 
sight  one  might  suppose  this  could  not  be  the  picture 
in  question,  as  there  is  no  Cupid !  But  it  was  stated 
by  Doctor  Hiibner  that  when  this  picture  came  to 
Dresden,  the  little  Cupid  at  the  feet  of  Venus  was 
so  much  damaged  that  it  was  painted  out.  In  the 
course  of  time  the  canvas  was  even  ascribed  to  Sas- 
soferato,  on  what  ground  it  would  be  difficult  to 
imagine.  Titian's  Venus  in  the  Uffizi  is  almost  ex- 
actly the  same  figure,  but  as  I  have  attempted  to 
show  in  my  volume  on  "  Classic  Myths  in  Art,"  the 
head  of  Eleanora  Gonzaga  was  probably  substituted 
in  the  case  of  the  Titian,  which  may  have  been  in 
other  respects  a  copy  of  the  picture  in  Dresden. 

In  1746  the  beautiful  large  canvas  by  Catena  was 
brought  from  Modena.  It  was  erroneously  given 
to  Andrea  del  Sarto,  and  represents  the  Virgin  sit- 


Ubc  Great  Venetians  ss 

ting"  on  the  knee  of  St.  Anne,  holding  in  her  turn 
the  infant  Saviour.  Joseph  is  seen  working  by 
them,  and  domestic  animals  are  introduced.  This 
denotes  a  great  departure  from  earlier  ideals,  when 
it  was  not  considered  fitting  to  show  the  earthly- 
mother  of  Mary,  the  divine  element  alone  being 
recognized  in  those  days.  The  painting  is  beauti- 
fully clear,  but  is  rather  hard.  In  a  letter  from 
Marcantonio  Michel,  written  in  Rome  in  1520,  he 
sounds  a  warning  note :  "  On  Good  Friday,  at  three 
at  night,  the  most  delightful  and  excellent  painter 
Raphael  of  Urbino  passed  away,  to  the  great  sor- 
row of  us  all.  ...  It  is  said  that  Michelangelo  is 
ill  at  Florence.  Therefore  bid  our  Catena  beware, 
for  the  turn  to  die  of  the  excellent  painters  has 
come."  Such  a  passage  in  a  contemporary  letter 
proves  that  Catena  was  held  in  high  esteem  by  the 
people  of  his  own  time. 

Palma  Vecchio  did  not  escape  the  fate  of  most 
of  the  painters  of  his  time,  in  having  his  various 
"  manners  "  classified.  Of  his  "  first  "  manner  there 
are  no  examples  to  be  seen  in  this  collection,  but  in 
his  "second"  and  "third" — (known  as  his 
"blonde"  manner),  there  are  specimens.  The  Re- 
clining Venus  and  the  Virgin  and  Child,  No.  191, 
are  both  in  the  blonde  period,  which  was  his  latest. 
The  Venus  Reposing  is  probably  a  portrait  of  a 
contemporary  Venetian  beauty,   and  a  beauty   she 


56      Ube  Hrt  of  tbe  H)rest>en  (Balleri? 

certainly  was.  The  picture  is  exquisite,  but  the 
head  strictly  that  of  a  fashionable  woman  of  the 
period. 

Palma's  Three  Sisters,  a  rather  provokingly 
smug"  array  of  lazy-looking  women,  are  chiefly 
charming  for  their  colouring,  warm  russets  being  a 
delightful  offset  for  the  soft  greens  and  blues.  The 
"  Anonimo  "  alludes  to  this  painting:  "  The  picture 
of  three  women  to  the  waist,  painted  from  life,  was 
the  work  of  Palma."  It  is  badly  restored ;  the 
features  of  the  sister  on  the  right  are  so  painted  over 
as  to  have  quite  changed  their  original  expression. 

Palma  Vecchio's  Virgin  and  Qiild  with  Saints 
—  the  Baptist  and  St.  Catherine  —  is  a  study  in 
half-lengths,  very  Venetian  in  character.  Tlie  pic- 
ture might  be  intended  as  a  study  in  childhood, 
young  womanhood,  young  manhood,  and  maternal 
love. 

The  central  interest  of  Palma's  picture  of  Jacob 
Saluting  Rachel,  is  the  fact  of  the  lover's  kiss.  Al- 
though there  is  a  good  deal  of  rural  accessory  in  the 
way  of  herdsmen,  inquiring  dogs,  and  pugnacious 
rams  butting  each  other  in  the  background,  one's 
eyes  are  held  captive  by  the  spectacle  of  the  delight 
of  the  fond  young  people,  who  meet  and  embrace. 
The  picture  was  once  considered  a  Giorgione,  and 
has  some  of  his  qualities. 

Lotto  was  probably  bom  in  1480,  and  lived  to  be 


Ube  areat  Venetians  57 

seventy-six,  dying  in  1556.  He  was  born  in  Venice, 
and  died  in  Loreto,  although  his  life  was  passed  in 
various  other  places.  He  is  believed  to  have  been  a 
pupil  of  Alvise  Vivarini.  When  he  was  feeling  the 
weight  of  ill  health  (he  completely  lost  his  voice  in 
1550),  he  went  to  Loreto  and  gave  himself  into  the 
keeping  of  the  canons  of  the  Holy  House  there, 
making  a  deed  of  transfer  of  all  his  property  to  this 
institution,  '*  being  tired  of  wandering,  and  wishing 
to  end  his  days  in  that  holy  place."  During  his  life 
he  arranged  that  he  was  to  have  rooms,  clothing, 
and  a  servant,  and  the  liberal  sum  of  a  florin  a 
month,  "  to  do  what  he  pleased  with,"  while  he  was 
to  benefit  by  the  prayers  of  the  brothers,  who  were 
thus  to  regard  him  as  a  benefactor.  So,  in  the  peace- 
ful seclusion  of  this  quiet  retreat,  he  continued  paint- 
ing, and  passed  a  comfortable  and  protected  period 
of  two  years,  after  he  had  finished  battling  with  the 
world:  quite  a  contribution  to  the  history  of  An- 
nuities! A  very  sensible  way  to  close  one's  career 
after  there  have  been  inroads  upon  the  vitality  which 
render  daily  responsibilities  of  undue  magnitude. 

That  Lorenzo  Lotto  was  high  in  favour  among 
the  artists  of  his  day  is  proved  by  a  letter  from  that 
arch  rogue,  Pietro  Aretino.  Pietro,  of  whom  I 
have  given  an  account  in  the  "  Art  of  the  Pitti 
Palace,"  approaches  the  subject  in  his  soft  suave 
way,  —  "  Oh,  Lotto,  as  goodness  good,  and  as  tal- 


58      Ube  art  ot  tbe  BresDen  Galleri? 

ent  talented,  Titian  .  .  .  greets  and  embraces  you 
by  the  token  of  the  letter  which  I  received  from 
him,  two  days  ago.  He  says  that  it  would  double 
the  pleasure  that  he  takes  in  the  emperor's  satis- 
faction with  the  pictures  he  is  now  painting,  if  he 
had  your  eye  and  your  judgment  to  approve  him. 
And  indeed,  the  painter  is  not  mistaken,  for  your 
judgment  has  been  formed  by  age,  by  nature,  and  by 
art  .  ,  .  envy  is  not  in  your  breast." 

The  rendering  of  Lotto  —  the  actual  handling 
of  the  paint,  is  quite  prophetic  of  the  modern  men. 
Berenson  finds  something  in  common  between  his 
methods  and  those  of  Manet. 

Lotto's  Madonna  and  Child  with  the  Baptist 
hangs  in  the  first  cabinet.  The  Madonna  is  clad  in 
blue  and  lilac,  and  through  the  open  window  in  the 
background  is  seen  a  delicate  landscape,  such  as  the 
artists  of  this  period  loved.  The  infant  is  leaning 
over  to  kiss  his  little  cousin,  and  the  action  is  thor- 
oughly human  and  tender.  No  sentiment  of  medi- 
aeval formalism  or  ritual  is  seen  here.  The  embrace 
between  the  children  does  not  occur  in  art  before 
15 18.    The  picture  is  quite  reminiscent  of  Alvise. 

When  Lotto  painted  a  picture,  he  charged  so  much 
for  each  figure  introduced,  showing  that  he  under- 
stood the  importance  of  each  bit  of  human  charac- 
terization, rather  than  the  ability  to  cover  so  many 
feet  of  canvas.     No.  194b  is  a  picture  catalogued 


XTbe  Great  IDenetians  59 

as  "  in  the  style  of  Lotto's  later  period,"  and  is 
probably  not  by  the  master  at  all.  It  represents  the 
martyrdom  of  St.  Sebastian  and  is  almost  like  a 
tinted  drawing. 

Paris  Bordone  is  represented  in  various  parts 
of  the  gallery.  In  both  the  large  halls  D  and  E  may 
be  seen  some  of  his  works.  In  one  hangs  a  picture 
of  Apollo  listening  with  much  disgust  to  Marsyas, 
playing  on  his  flute,  and  in  the  other  a  delightfully 
decorative  Diana,  who  holds  her  dogs  in  leash,  while 
a  nymph  presents  to  the  virgin  goddess  the  head 
of  a  stag  just  slain.  There  are  rich  blues  in  the  sky, 
and  in  the  skirt  of  Diana.  The  painting  is  rendered 
with  a  strong  dark  outline.  In  all  may  be  detected 
the  curious  treatment  of  the  hair  —  in  little  tight 
ringlets  —  it  is  quite  eccentric.  The  textile  qualities 
are  good.  Paris  Bordone  worked  with  Titian,  and, 
indeed,  is  regarded  as  the  most  celebrated  of  his 
pupils.  In  many  tones  and  touches  he  recalls  the 
master. 

Bonifazio  the  Elder  and  Bonifazio  the  Younger 
are  both  to  be  seen  in  the  same  room.  Cabinet  2,  so 
that  one  may  easily  compare  their  methods.  The 
pictures  have  been  variously  attributed  at  different 
times  to  Giorgione,  and  to  Palma,  and  the  general 
effect  would  often  account  for  this  error;  but  com- 
parison of  certain  details  will  prove  that  the  later 
critics  are  right.     For  instance,  the  hand  as  painted 


6o      xibe  Hrt  ot  tbe  Dresden  0aller^ 

by  the  older  and  younger  Bonifazio  is  not  like  that 
rendered  by  their  master,  Palma ;  both  of  them  draw 
a  fleshier  hand  than  Palma,  who  usually  depicts  a 
thin  angular  hand. 

In  Bonifazio  Veronese's  Virgin  and  Child  with 
St.  Catherine,  St.  Peter,  and  St.  Anthony,  there  is 
delicious  tone.  Other  works  by  Bonifazio  have  been 
noted  in  a  previous  chapter. 

Polidoro  Lanzani's  picture  of  a  nobleman  bring- 
ing his  child  to  the  Virgin  might  easily  be  taken  for 
a  painting  by  Paolo  Veronese;  Polidoro  was  a  pupil 
of  Titian. 

There  are  several  examples,  but  rather  unim- 
portant ones,  of  the  work  of  Jacopo  da  Ponte,  called 
Bassano,  at  Dresden ;  also  many  school  pieces  from 
his  studio.  They  are  to  be  seen  here  and  there  in 
different  parts  of  the  gallery,  and  deal  chiefly  with 
Old  Testament  subjects.  The  more  important 
Leandro  Bassano,  known  as  Da  Ponte,  is  repre- 
sented by  two  portraits  of  the  Doge  Pasquale  Ci- 
cogna  and  his  wife  Laura  Morosini. 

Not  especially  striking  is  Andrea  Schiavone's 
Dead  Christ  supported  by  two  men  and  an  angel. 

Jacopo  Robusti,  the  marvellous  Tintoretto,  has 
several  pictures  to  testify  to  his  genius  in  this  col- 
lection. The  hall  E  has  the  earliest  example  —  Six 
Women  with  Musical  Instruments.  This  is  a  gen- 
uine Tintoretto,  but  his  early  style  is  much  harder 


Ube  6reat  Venetians  6i 

than  it  became  later.  The  colouring  is  golden,  and 
the  picture  attractive.  The  long,  slender,  graceful 
figures  are  in  charming  contrast  to  most  of  the  nudes 
of  the  period.  One  nymph  is  playing  upon  a  little 
organ,  which  is  operated  by  a  companion  who  sits 
on  the  other  side,  and  pulls  two  cords  with  both 
hands.  This  is  an  unfamiliar  form  of  bellows  work, 
but  would  undoubtedly  produce  the  same  result  as 
pedals.  Strictly  speaking,  these  lovely  women  are 
not  playing  upon  their  instruments,  but  are  tuning 
them  preparatory  to  performing  in  unison.  They 
are  comparing  their  musical  notes,  and  apparently 
waiting  for  "  cues  "  to  begin. 

With  the  exception  of  those  in  Vienna,  the  finest 
Tintorettos  north  of  the  Alps  are  in  Dresden.  A 
portrait  of  a  lady  in  mourning  hangs  here,  which 
used  to  be  considered  a  Titian.  A  very  lovely  opal- 
escent example  hangs  in  this  hall,  —  it  represents 
the  allegory  of  the  persecution  of  the  Woman  by 
the  Dragon,  "  A  woman  clothed  with  the  sun,  and 
the  moon  under  her  feet,  and  upon  her  head  a  crown 
of  stars,"  according  to  the  description  in  Revelation 
xii.  The  woman  is  seen  at  the  upper  part  of  the 
composition,  on  the  left ;  "  and  there  appeared  an- 
other wonder  in  heaven,  and  behold  a  great  red 
dragon,  having  seven  heads,  and  ten  horns,  and 
seven  crowns  upon  his  heads."  This  monster  is 
seen  wallowing  in  the  lower  depths,  —  on  the  right 


62      ube  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresden  ©allerp 

side  is  the  illustration  of  another  verse :  "  and  there 
was  war  in  heaven,  Michael  and  his  angels  fought 
against  the  dragon,  and  the  dragon  fought  and  his 
angels.  And  prevailed  not :  neither  was  their  place 
found  any  more  in  heaven.  And  the  great  dragon 
was  cast  out."  Tintoretto  presents  the  "  angels  of 
Satan  "  in  the  same  spirit  as  his  famous  "  tempter  " 
in  the  Scuolo  di  san  Rocco  in  Venice,  with  a  wild, 
voluptuous  beauty,  really  offering  a  temptation  to 
mortals  instead  of  being  the  repulsive  reptile  forms 
which  were  portrayed  by  the  northern  nations,  and 
which  we  shall  have  opportunity  to  consider  when 
we  deal  with  those  schools  in  art.  This  picture  is 
a  strong  example  of  Tintoretto,  and  characteristic 
in  every  way. 

Tintoretto's  Parnassus  is  a  restless,  uncomfort- 
able, vague  place  —  just  the  proper  environment 
for  a  certain  school  of  poets  whose  uncertainty 
of  ideal  makes  them  waver  and  sway  in  their  dic- 
tion, much  like  these  floating  Muses,  who  hover  at 
all  sorts  of  indeterminate  angles,  and  suggest  a 
form  of  poetry  that  should  have  no  special  coher- 
ence but  should  express  through  "  lilt "  and  eu- 
phony alone  a  sort  of  hypnotic  rhythm.  The  Par- 
nassus is  probably  not  entirely  by  Tintoretto's  own 
hand,  —  the  finish  is  closer  than  usual  with  him, 
and  the  faces  of  the  women  conform  too  strictly  to 
one  type,  which  does  not  happen  to  be  Tintoretto's 


XTbe  (5ceat  Denetians  63 

type.  In  this  picture  one  sees  evidence  of  the  kind 
of  study  in  perspective  which  dehghted  Tintoretto : 
he  used  to  make  Httle  clay  models,  and  then  suspend 
them  from  beams  in  the  ceiling,  so  that  he  might  see 
them  from  below  as  if  they  were  flying  through  the 
air. 

Near  by  hangs  a  charming  painting,  genuine  also, 
showing  a  knight  in  armour  rescuing  two  ladies 
from  a  tower.  He  stands  below,  in  a  boat,  which  is 
ridiculously  inadequate  to  its  load,  not  to  mention 
the  addition  of  two  fair  nude  ladies.  This  boat 
looks  as  if  a  man  in  armour  alone  would  be  sufficient 
to  swamp  it.  It  has  a  sort  of  gondola  prow  at 
either  end.  A  boy  sits  at  the  stern,  and  neither  he 
nor  the  knight  seem  to  regard  it  as  at  all  peculiar 
that  the  ladies  are  descending  from  their  captivity 
without  any  clothes.  They  are  all  unembarrassed 
and  graceful,  and  the  composition  charming.  The 
tones  are  cool. 

The  double  portrait  of  an  old  and  young  man  by 
Tintoretto,  No.  270,  is  interesting.  Tintoretto's 
Holy  Family,  with  the  Patron  worshipping,  is  a 
very  rich  canvas.  The  Madonna  is  severely  clad, 
not  as  Tintoretto  and  the  Venetians  of  his  day 
usually  painted  her;  but  St.  Catherine,  who  stands 
by,  is  crowned  and  jewelled  and  is  a  fine  foil  to  the 
almost  Byzantine  simplicity  of  the  Virgin.  Another 
Tintoretto,  now  considered  only  a  studio  piece,  is 


64      XTbe  Brt  of  tbe  H)rest>en  (Balleri? 

the  Woman  taken  in  Adultery  standing  before 
Christ. 

Tintoretto's  charm  as  a  man  is  summed  up  by 
Ridolfi  perhaps  better  than  he  reahzed  when  he 
wrote  the  description :  "  he  was  of  a  kind  and  ami- 
able disposition,  for  painting  does  not  cause  men  to 
become  peculiar,  as  some  people  think,  but  it  rather 
makes  them  accomplished  and  quick-witted.  He 
was  accustomed  to  converse  with  his  friends  in  a 
most  obliging  manner,  and  many  bright  sayings  and 
kind  deeds  are  recorded  of  him;  and  he  could  say 
witty  things  in  an  amiable  manner,  without  the 
least  appearance  of  jesting." 

There  is  a  splendid  Domenico  Tintoretto  here,  — 
the  work  of  the  talented  son  of  the  great  Venetian. 
He  employs  a  dark  outline,  and  emphasizes  it  in- 
tentionally. Four  saints  look  up  from  the  earth  to 
the  vision  of  the  Virgin  and  Child  which  occurs  in 
the  heavens  above.  The  canvas  is  an  enormous 
one,  and  the  whole,  a  creditable  work  of  the  pupil 
of  his  father. 

With  regard  to  the  work  of  Paolo  Veronese, 
Dresden  is  in  advance  of  either  Venice  or  Paris; 
the  four  best  examples  in  the  world  to  be  seen  to- 
gether are  in  this  hall.  The  Madonna  of  the  Cuccina 
Family  stands  out  as  the  finest  of  these,  as  we  look 
at  them.  After  this,  the  Adoration  of  the  Kings 
and  the  Marriage  at  Cana  appeal  to  us  as  splendid 


Ube  (Breat  Venetians  65 

in  colour  and  rich  in  decorative  design.  There 
never  was  a  painter  of  stuffs  so  satisfactory  as 
Paolo;  the  mere  upholstery,  —  the  "millinery"  as 
some  people  irreverently  term  it,  is  a  joy  to  the  eye, 
and  at  first  the  subject  is  a  secondary  consideration. 
The  Cuccina  Family  was  one  of  the  wealthiest  in 
Venice  in  the  sixteenth  century,  coming  originally 
from  Bergamo.  Francis  L,  Duke  of  Modena, 
bought  this  and  the  other  two  large  pictures,  the 
Adoration  and  the  Marriage  at  Cana,  from  the  Cuc- 
cina family,  who  owned  all  three  of  them,  in  1645. 
This  picture  is  a  good  instance  of  Veronese's  ability 
to  plan  a  system  of  balance  in  his  compositions,  ar- 
ranging his  values  in  radiating  points  of  interest, 
which  all  shall  eventually  lead  toward  the  central 
object.  In  this  instance,  the  lights,  starting  from 
the  figure  clad  in  white  in  the  midst,  make  a  curved 
line,  carried  out  by  means  of  the  faces  which  occur 
at  different  heights,  down  through  the  little  boy 
leaning  against  the  column,  from  his  hand  on  to  the 
clear  bit  of  sky,  which  connects  the  line  with  the 
arm  and  shoulder  of  the  Baptist,  and  thence  leads 
up  to  the  Virgin  and  Child.  On  the  other  side  a 
similar  line  may  be  detected,  having  the  same  species 
of  festooned  grace,  but  it  is  a  shorter  series  of  lights, 
and  the  sweep  of  all  the  interest  makes  toward  the 
holy  child  at  the  end,  while  the  family,  with  the 
stately  matron  in  the  centre,  is  still  the  real  subject 


66       XTbe  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresden  (Balleri? 

of  the  composition.  The  attractive  little  Cuccinas 
in  their  striped  suits,  which  to  modern  eyes  are  so 
suggestive  of  little  convicts,  are  engaged  in  natural 
occupations  of  childhood.  One  is  climbing  against 
the  porphyry  column,  and  the  other  is  playing  with 
a  dog.  They  are  quite  indifferent  to  the  fact  that 
Faith,  Hope,  and  Charity  are  leading  them  to  the 
great  throne  of  God  :  to  them,  as  simple  little  human 
beings,  this  allegory  only  means  that  their  home  is 
happy:   they  do  not  yet  realize  why  this  is  so. 

Veronese  is  more  than  a  decorator  —  he  is  a  great 
composer  of  pageants  and  splendid  glowing  scenes. 
While  all  critics  cannot  go  to  the  extent  of  claiming 
that  Veronese  is  a  religious  painter,  Mr.  Kenyon 
Cox  does  consider  him  capable  of  rendering  scenes 
of  religious  import.  Veronese  is  often  considered 
trivial ;  his  dogs  and  cats,  monkeys  and  parrots,  are 
sometimes  felt  to  be  intrusions  in  an  important 
scene;  but  perhaps  after  all  he  is  only  in  advance  of 
his  times :  in  our  age  of  realistic  art  and  literature, 
we  ought  not  to  complain  of  this  comprehensiveness. 
In  his  own  day,  however,  this  tendency  got  him  into 
trouble.  The  Inquisition  summoned  him,  on  July 
^»  1 573'  ^^d  accused  him  of  introducing  profane 
figures,  dogs,  etc.,  into  certain  religious  pictures. 
The  examiners  ordered  Paolo  to  remove  a  dog  at 
once,  and  to  substitute  the  Magdalen.  The  Inquisi- 
tors had  not  much  sense  of  humour :    Paolo  must 


XTbe  (Bceat  IPenetfans  67 

have  been  amused  at  this  suggestion!  However  it 
was  settled,  the  dog  was  never  painted  out,  nor  was 
the  Magdalen  added. 

The  interest  of  the  Marriage  at  Cana  centres  in 
the  graceful  standing  figure  of  a  man  who  holds  his 
wine-glass  up  to  the  light,  —  a  fine  specimen  of 
Venetian  glass  it  is  too !  —  evidently  exclaiming, 
"  Thou  hast  kept  the  good  wine  until  now !  "  The 
face  of  Christ,  watching  this  man  intently,  is  full 
of  strength,  but  it  lacks  beauty.  The  two  old  men 
at  the  end  of  the  table  watch  the  pouring  out  of  the 
wine,  and  are  more  non-committal.  A  young  man 
standing  behind  one  of  them  is  drinking  eagerly ;  he 
is  neither  suspicious  nor  astonished,  but  enjoys  the 
novel  addition  to  the  feast  without  question  as  to 
its  origin.  As  if  in  defiance  of  the  Inquisition  and 
their  violent  attack,  Veronese  here  introduces  a  girl 
caressing  a  dog  in  one  corner,  and  a  boy  playing 
with  a  cat  almost  in  the  centre  of  the  canvas ! 
George  Eliot  did  not  at  all  admire  the  heads  in  the 
Marriage  at  Cana,  considering  them  unattractive 
though  well  executed.  We  all  agree  in  this,  I  am 
sure,  regarding  the  stout  guest  who  is  turning  to 
look  around  at  the  men  who  are  testing  the  wine; 
in  fact  there  is  a  sexless  ugliness  about  this  whole 
figure  which  has  led  some  writers  to  regard  it  as 
a  man  and  others  as  a  woman ;  the  head  of  Christ, 
however,  is  fine,  with  its  earnest  expression,  watch- 


68      Ubc  Hrt  of  tbe  Btesben  Gallerg 

ing  eagerly  to  see  the  effect  of  the  miracle  on  the 
bystanders. 

Veronese  knew  well  how  to  obtain  the  necessary 
effect  of  a  shallow  plane  in  large  wall  pictures,  by 
using  light  in  a  generous  way,  letting  it  flood  the 
whole,  much  as  footlights  do  on  the  stage,  and  keep- 
ing the  foregrounds  of  his  compositions  well-filled, 
so  that  little  depth  of  background  is  necessary  to 
enhance  the  scene. 

The  draperies  which  Paolo  Veronese  paints  are 
not  rampant;  they  are  not  portrayed  as  if  they  were 
in  a  swirling  wind,  as  is  so  often  the  case  with  the 
textiles  of  the  other  great  Venetians,  and  also  of 
Rubens.  He  keeps  to  a  steady  value  of  colour,  not 
allowing  his  shadows  to  be  heavy,  with  striking 
points  of  light,  like  Rembrandt. 

Veronese's  treatment  of  textiles  is  about  the  best 
in  the  world.  Rubens  is  too  exuberant  in  these  de- 
tails, as  in  most  things;  the  draperies  of  Veronese 
are  so  exquisite,  so  restrained,  and  yet  withal  so 
sufficient,  that  one  does  not  realize  his  supreme 
cleverness  in  handling  them  unless  one  knows  by 
experience  the  difficulties  of  such  painting. 

In  most  of  the  other  works  attributed  to  Veronese 
in  this  gallery  the  hand  of  a  pupil  may  be  traced 
here  and  there.  But  they  are  all  very  beautiful 
pictures,  and  well  worth  studying.  The  figures  in 
the  Christ  Bearing  the  Cross  are  nobly  planned,  in 


tlbe  Great  IDenetians  69 

their  relation  to  the  whole  composition;  a  very 
difficult  proposition,  with  the  uncompromising  lines 
of  the  great  wooden  cross  in  the  middle  of  the  pic- 
ture. One  must  go  back  to  Hall  D,  in  order  to  ex- 
amine the  charming  finding  of  Moses,  in  which  the 
most  seductively  graceful  court  ladies  are  seen  mas- 
querading as  Egyptians.  There  is  absolutely  noth- 
ing to  suggest  the  Nile  in  any  detail  of  the  compo- 
sition. Even  the  little  negro  slaves  who  are  caring 
for  the  pets  in  the  left  corner  are  more  like  imported 
pages  in  a  European  court.  The  figure  of  the 
woman  at  the  left,  who  is  bending  her  enchanting 
head  toward  Pharaoh's  daughter,  is  one  of  the  most 
exquisite  in  Venetian  art.  The  model  who  posed 
for  this  may  have  been  the  same  who  occurs  as  Leda 
in  Hall  C,  an  alert,  fascinating  type  of  woman,  — 
not  simply  languishing,  but  with  ideas  of  her  own ; 
a  fit  mate  for  Jupiter.  The  background  of  Vero- 
nese's Finding  of  Moses,  is  one  of  his  most  beauti- 
ful studies  of  landscape,  suggestive  of  his  early 
home  on  the  Adige.  Nearly  all  Italian  artists  loved 
to  paint  the  picturesque  country  of  their  childhood's 
recollection.  In  this  picture,  as  in  the  Marriage  at 
Cana  (and,  of  course,  in  the  Cuccina  family),  the 
likenesses  of  several  celebrated  Venetians  occur. 

The  Supper  at  Emmaus  is  very  likely  only  a 
studio  work,  but  is  soft  and  mellow.  The  clear 
green  looks  as  if  the  paint  were  glazed  over  gold  or 


7°      Ubc  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresden  6aller^ 

yellow-white.  Veronese  has  again  introduced  the 
little  girl  playing  with  a  dog  on  the  floor,  and  in 
this  case  she  is  thoroughly  out  of  place,  —  a  little 
smirking  courtier  stuck  as  an  impertinence  among 
a  lot  of  dignified  sturdy  peasants. 

Susannah  bathing  by  a  tiny  spigot  in  the  fountain 
wall,  which  sends  out  a  jet  of  water  toward  her  foot, 
is  rather  an  original  rendering  of  the  appearance  of 
the  scene.  A  little  modern  soap-dish,  with  a  cake 
of  soap  on  end  in  it,  stands  near  by.  The  Elders 
must  have  had  keen  imaginations  to  pierce  with 
their  eyes  the  thick  mantle  which  falls  over  Susannah 
on  the  side  where  they  stand.  Given  the  outdoor 
conditions,  a  less  ostentatious  bath  it  would  be  diffi- 
cult to  take.  The  lady  has  on  a  chemise  and  a  cloak, 
held  by  a  girdle.  The  old  gentlemen  must  have 
been  singularly  prurient,  or  unused  to  ladies  in 
decollete. 

Among  the  works  of  the  school  of  Veronese  is 
to  be  seen  in  the  third  cabinet  a  delightfully  infantile 
and  attractive  little  child  with  a  rattle.  The  treat- 
ment is  hard,  but  the  subject  very  appealing. 

Italian  art,  before  it  died,  had  time,  through  the 
Spanish  invasion  of  Venice,  to  influence  that  great 
Spanish  school  which,  through  Velasquez,  and  Goya, 
has  done  so  much  to  form  modern  ideals.  The  suc- 
cession may  be  traced  through  Venice  to  Spain, 
through  Velasquez  to  genuine  realism,  —  not  neces- 


Ube  Great  IDcnetians  71 

sarily  the  selecting  of  repulsive  objects  to  paint,  but 
plain  truth  of  colour  and  form, 

Theotocopuli,  that  very  cosmopolitan  artist  who  is 
sometimes  recognized  as  a  Greek  and  sometimes  a 
Spaniard,  is  a  little  of  each  of  these,  but  as  his  work 
is  classed  with  the  Italians  in  the  Dresden  catalogue, 
we  must  assume  that  his  Greek  parentage,  which 
gave  him  his  pseudonym  El  Greco,  and  his  long 
residence  in  Spain,  where  he  was  recognized  as  a 
Spaniard,  are  to  be  discounted,  and  that  the  empha- 
sis must  be  laid  upon  the  fact  that  he  was  a  pupil  of 
Titian.  The  picture  which  we  have  here  by  El 
Greco  represents  Christ  Healing  the  Blind  Man. 
The  composition  is  full  of  action,  and  although  the 
figure  of  Our  Lord  is  not  in  the  centre,  but  quite 
at  the  left,  the  eye  naturally  sees  the  group  of  inter- 
est at  once,  as  the  balancing  group  of  disciples  on 
the  right  is  on  a  different  plane,  being  farther  back. 
Theotocopuli  painted  sometimes  well  and  sometimes 
badly;  he  greatly  baffled  the  categorical  tendencies 
of  critics,  who  like  to  apportion  a  painter's  career 
into  his  "  first,  second,  and  third  manners."  In 
this  sense,  El  Greco  had  "  no  manners."  He  would 
paint  a  fine  picture  and  an  execrable  one  in  the  same 
year,  probably  governed  by  moods,  which  rendered 
him  incapable  of  portraying  uncongenial  scenes  with 
success,  or  subjects  to  which  he  felt  no  personal 
impulse.      Theophile   Gautier,    after    analyzing  the 


72       Ubc  Hrt  of  tbe  H)re0&en  (Balleri? 

style  of  El  Greco,  sums  it  up  by  the  trenchant 
phrase,  "  In  all  this  there  appears  a  depraved  energy, 
a  misappropriated  power,  which  betrays,  both  the 
great  painter  and  the  folly  of  genius."  Theotocopuli 
died  at  Toledo,  in  1625 ;  his  friend,  Luis  de  Gon- 
gora,  wrote  a  fantastic  sonnet  in  his  memory,  lines 
of  which  may  be  translated  as  follows : 

*'  Stranger!  beneath  this  polished  porphyry  stone, 
Locked  from  the  world,  the  sweetest  pencil  lies 
That  e'er  could  witch  thee  with  resplendent  dyes 
O'er  breathing  wood  or  living  canvas  thrown. 


Here  lies  The  Greek ;  to  nature  all  his  art 
Leaving,  to  all,  his  lore;  to  Iris  hues; 
To  Phoebus  lights  ;  to  Morpheus  shadows  deep ; 
Let  his  great  urn  thy  tear-drops,  as  they  start, 
Despite  its  hardness,  drink.  .  .  ." 


CHAPTER  III. 


LATER    ITALIAN    SCHOOLS 


The  Dresden  Gallery  is  especially  rich  in  the 
Italian  schools  of  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth 
centuries.  The  collection  having  been  made  largely 
by  wealthy  princes  of  Saxony,  it  was  easy  for  the 
founders  of  the  gallery  to  buy  good  examples  of 
the  work  of  the  Italians  of  their  times.  Indeed,  in 
most  cases,  the  masterpieces  of  the  leading  artists 
of  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth  centuries  may  be 
seen  in  Dresden.  Often  one  has  been  prejudiced 
against  certain  artists  because  one  has  had  to  judge 
of  them  by  inferior  works ;  but  in  Dresden  one  sees 
the  best  productions  of  these  painters.  It  is  only 
fair  to  such  artists,  especially  those  of  the  seven- 
teenth century,  to  reserve  judgment  until  the  Dres- 
den gallery  has  been  examined. 

In  the  Hall  F,  and  in  its  surrounding  cabinets, 
we  deal  chiefly  with  the  Eclectics ;  those  painters  of 
the  seventeenth  and  eighteenth  centuries  in  Italy 
who  quarried  from  all  the  perfections  of  the  earlier 
schools,  and  flattered  themselves  that  they  repro- 

73 


74      XTbe  Hrt  ot  tbe  BresDen  (Bailer^ 

dnced  them  in  their  works;  whereas  really,  be- 
cause they  were  going  to  art  for  their  inspiration 
instead  of  to  nature,  they  rapidly  declined,  and  be- 
came of  little  importance  in  the  world  of  construct- 
ive genius. 

It  has  often  been  remarked  that  genius  begins 
where  rules  end;  but  it  is  a  poor  plan  to  cut  loose 
from  rules  until  we  are  convinced  that  we  have  the 
requisite  genius  to  continue  creative  work. 

Fuseli  called  Academic  mediocrity  "  the  cipher 
of  art,"  and  this  it  was  that  the  Eclectics  attained. 
As  one  glances  casually  about  in  this  salon,  one  is 
conscious  of  great  uniformity  of  excellence,  but  lit- 
tle overpowering  originality.  The  Eclectics  were 
copyists,  and  therefore  were  not  expressing  their 
own  individuality.  "  Line  upon  line,  here  a  little 
and  there  a  little,"  they  had  consciously  adopted 
features  from  all  the  existing  schools,  and  lacked 
vitality  of  personal  effort  and  discovery.  They 
were  compilers,  and  as  such,  can  hardly  be  recog- 
nized as  a  school.  Jean  Frangois  Millet  said :  "  De- 
cadence set  in  when  people  began  to  believe  that  art 
was  the  supreme  end ;  when  such  and  such  a  painter 
was  taken  as  model  and  aim,  without  remembering 
that  he  had  fixed  his  eyes  upon  infinity." 

We  may  here  observe  numerous  examples  of  the 
works  of  the  Carracci.  Ludovico,  the  veritable 
founder  of  the  Eclectic  school,  was  a  pupil  of  Pros- 


Xater  Utallan  Scbools  75 

pero  Fontana  (one  of  the  Decadents,  and  the  au- 
thor of  the  Holy  Family  with  St.  Cecilia,  in  the 
forty-second  cabinet,  No.  115).  A  picture  of  the 
Repose  on  the  Flight  into  Egypt  is  here  attributed 
to  Ludovico  on  rather  questionable  grounds.  The 
picture  came,  in  1742,  from  the  Carignan  collection 
in  Paris.  A  curious  conceit  is  introduced;  one  of 
the  angels  who  minister  to  the  Virgin  presents  her 
with  a  basket  of  needlework.  Occasionally,  in 
paintings  of  the  Virgin,  a  basket  of  sewing  mate- 
rials is  introduced,  as  a  symbol  of  industry  and 
domesticity ;  sometimes  also  a  pitcher  of  water  and 
a  dish  of  fruit  signify  temperance. 

Ludovico  Carracci  had  two  nephews,  Annibale 
and  Agostino,  and  he  instructed  them  in  his  own 
ideas;  they  finally  formed  an  academy  in  which 
they  propagated  their  doctrines,  exhorting  their 
followers  to  adopt  the  good  features  of  all  the 
schools.  They  were  admonished  to  draw  as  nearly 
as  possible  like  Michelangelo;  to  study  grace  from 
Correggio,  colour  from  Titian  and  the  other  Vene- 
tians; in  short,  to  compile  the  characteristics  of  all 
the  leading  artists,  and  try  to  turn  out  better! 
Nature,  the  one  thing  needful,  they  overlooked. 

In  his  Genius  of  Fame,  No.  306,  Annibale  cer- 
tainly did  not  confine  himself  to  the  Venetian  sen- 
timent for  colour;  it  is  a  pink  and  blue  confection, 
— '  a  kind  of  colossal  Valentine.     The  colours  are 


76      Zbc  Brt  ot  tbe  Dresden  Gallery? 

cold  and  chalky.  Although  the  clouds  are  intended 
to  be  fleecy,  they  are  deliberately  shaded  with  black 
paint,  and  the  efi:'ect  is  anything  but  light. 

Among  others  of  Annibale  Carracci's  paintings 
is  a  large  Madonna  Enthroned  with  Saints,  which  is 
hard  and  mannered.  It  lacks  celestial  glow.  St. 
Francis  is  seen  kissing  the  foot  of  the  Virgin ;  the 
Baptist  stands  by,  and  St.  Matthew  is  writing  in 
a  book.  This  is  one  of  the  few  instances  in  art  in 
which  St.  Matthew  appears  as  a  balancing  figure 
to  that  of  St.  John.  He  is  not  a  patron  Saint  of 
any  special  place  or  subject.  The  picture  has  a  land- 
scape background.  No.  305,  the  large  St.  Roch 
distributing  alms,  Is  a  fine  composition  and  an  inter- 
esting picture. 

But  the  gem  of  Carracci's  work  In  Dresden  Is 
the  delightful  Lute  Player,  in  the  fourth  cabinet. 
It  is  rich  and  dark,  and  beautifully  handled.  This 
proves  that  Annibale  was  a  consummate  portrait 
painter.  His  superb  portraits  are  nearly  always 
surprises  to  people  who  have  only  thought  of  him 
in  connection  with  religious  art,  when  he  was 
merely  copying  other  artists.  When  he  turned  his 
attention  to  portraying  a  human  face,  which  must 
perforce  be  studied  from  the  original,  and  not  from 
some  admired  type  made  popular  by  another  painter, 
he  is  at  his  best,  and  shows  himself  really  great. 

There  Is  a  head  of  Christ,  hanging  also  In  the 


Xater  Utaltan  Scbools  77 

fourth  cabinet,  by  Annibale  Carracci,  which  has  an 
unusually  soft  glow.  Some  of  the  school  pieces 
are  good,  but  most  of  them  are  hardly  worth  special 
attention. 

Agostino  Carracci  defined  the  principles  of  his 
school  in  a  sonnet,  of  which  the  following  is  a  free 
translation : 

"  Let  him  who  wishes  to  be  a  good  painter,"  ad- 
vises Agostino,  "  acquire  the  design  of  Rome,  Ve- 
netian action,  and  Venetian  management  of  shade, 
the  dignified  colour  of  Lombardy  (meaning  da 
Vinci),  the  terrible  manner  of  Michelangelo,  Ti- 
tian's truth  and  nature;  the  sovereign  purity  of 
Correggio's  style,  and  the  just  symmetry  of 
Raphael,  the  decorum  and  well-grounded  study  of 
a  Tibaldi,  the  invention  of  the  learned  Primaticcio, 
a  little  of  Parmegianino's  grace;  but  without  so 
much  study  and  weary  labour,  let  him  apply  himself 
to  imitate  the  works  which  our  Niccolo  dell'  Abate 
left  us  here." 

Thus  it  will  be  seen  that  while  the  Eclectics 
aimed  only  at  borrowing  from  others,  their  aims 
were  not  even  always  high,  and  their  models  quite 
unworthy  of  imitation.  No  wonder  it  was  a  short- 
lived school! 

Among  the  best  of  the  Eclectics  was  Domen- 
ichino,  but  he  can  only  be  seen  in  one  example 
here,  —  Charity,  or  Love,  as  a  mother,  reclining. 


78      Ube  Hrt  ot  tbe  Dresden  Gallery 

surrounded  by  three  children.  Domenichino  was  a 
kindly  and  entertaining  companion,  full  of  quaint 
humour.  His  biographer,  Passeri,  recounts  charm- 
ing anecdotes  about  him,  as  he  saw  him  while  he 
was  himself  engaged  in  fresco  work  at  the  chapel 
of  Frascati,  for  Cardinal  Aldobrandini,  with  whom 
Domenichino  was  then  staying.  "  He  would  draw 
caricatures  of  us  all,"  says  Passeri,  "  and  the  in- 
habitants of  the  villa;  and  when  he  succeeded  to 
his  perfect  satisfaction,  he  was  wont  to  indulge  in 
immoderate  fits  of  laughter.  We  who  were  in  the 
adjoining  room,  would  run  in  to  know  his  reason, 
and  then  he  showed  us  his  spirited  sketches.  He 
drew  a  caricature  of  me  with  a  guitar;  and  one  of 
the  Guarda  Roba,  —  who  was  lame  of  the  gout,  — 
and  one  of  the  Sub-Guarda  Roba,  —  a  most  ridicu- 
lous figure.  To  prevent  our  being  offended,  he  car- 
icatured himself." 

Guercino  may  be  well  studied  in  Dresden  from 
numerous  examples.  All  the  large  pictures,  how- 
ever, are  rather  sharp.  His  Semiramis  Informed 
by  a  Messenger  of  the  Insurrection  of  Babylon  is 
hard  and  yellow  in  tone,  and  has  certainly  not 
much  verisimilitude;  all  the  personages  are  quite 
Italian  in  type  and  costume.  Semiramis  is  sup- 
posed to  be  sitting  at  her  toilette  when  she  receives 
this  bit  of  news,  but  it  would  seem  a  little  incoher- 
ent to  put  on  her  crown  before  doing  up  her  hair ! 


Xater  Utalian  Scbools  79 

So,  however,  Guercino  has  chosen  to  represent  the 
fair  Assyrian  queen. 

An  early  St.  Francis  with  an  angel,  who  is  com- 
forting him  with  the  strains  of  a  violin,  is  ecstatic 
and  dramatic. 

Diana  with  a  greyhound,  a  pretty  half-length 
picture  of  a  good-looking  Jewess,  also  lacks  classic 
feeling.  The  draperies  are  very  graceful,  how- 
ever, and  as  a  study  of  a  breezy  young  huntress 
it  is  attractive. 

The  Birth  of  Adonis  from  the  Myrrh-tree  is 
here  to  be  seen,  also  by  Guercino.  The  startled  in- 
fant emerges  from  the  trunk,  and  is  tenderly  taken 
in  hand  by  the  nymphs.  The  composition  is  pretty, 
and  the  large  canvas  well-filled  with  graceful  lines 
of  draperies. 

A  curious  picture,  called  Painting  and  Drawing, 
represents  a  young  woman  occupied  in  painting  a 
sleeping  Cupid,  pausing  to  glance  over  her  shoulder 
at  a  gray-bearded  man  who  is  holding  a  sketch. 

Guercino  seems  to  gloat  over  scenes  of  carnage 
and  weeping  in  this  hall !  Here  we  see  Silvio,  the 
hero  of  the  Faithful  Shepherd  (II  Pastor  Fido,  by 
Guarini),  deploring  the  wound  which  he  has  unwit- 
tingly inflicted  upon  his  beloved  Dorinda.  The 
scene  is  treated  gingerly;  Dorinda  is  supported  by 
a  faithful  herdsman,  who  raises  a  corner  of  her 
garment,  exposing  a  small  wound  which  looks  like 


8o      Ube  Hrt  ot  tbe  Dresden  Gallct^ 

a  skilful  operation  for  appendicitis.  Silvio,  in  a 
strictly  "  stage  attitude,"  falls  on  one  knee,  and, 
with  his  bow  and  arrow  in  one  hand,  while  the 
other  holds  his  hunting-shirt  open  in  a  restrained 
and  operatic  manner,  begs  her  forgiveness. 

If  one  turns,  one  sees  another  picture  nearly  op- 
posite this  one,  also  by  Guercino ;  a  bolder  and  much 
more  bloody  rendering  is  this,  of  Venus  bending 
over  the  body  of  Adonis,  both  her  hands  uplifted 
and  all  ten  fingers  spread  out  incontinently.  Adonis 
is  a  good  deal  gashed  and  spattered;  his  wound 
looks  like  another  and  unsuccessful  operation,  only 
it  is  on  the  wrong  side  for  the  appendix!  Cupid 
is  seen  leading  away  the  offending  boar  by  the  ear ! 

Here  again  is  Cephalus  despairing  over  the  body 
of  his  too  faithful  Procris.  Lamentations  seem  to 
be  in  order,  and  it  is  a  relief  to  turn  to  the  enamel- 
like, peaceful  mediocrity  of  the  Lot  and  his  Daugh- 
ters, No.  368.  The  three  survivors  are  partaking 
of  light  refreshments,  their  backs  discreetly  turned 
upon  the  landscape,  in  the  midst  of  which  Lot's 
wife  is  seen  in  her  new  saline  form. 

Guercino  can  only  be  seen  to  advantage  in  his 
four  studies  for  the  Evangelists.  We  must  step 
into  the  fifth  cabinet,  and  there  we  are  repaid  by 
these  powerful  heads.  St.  Matthew,  with  his  angel 
holding  the  book  in  which  he  is  writing,  is  a  ven- 
erable  apostle.      The   white   hair   and    beard    are 


Xater  IFtalian  Scbools  Si 

painted  in  the  most  beaut ful  way,  and  the  head  is 
extremely  noble. 

St.  Mark  is  busy  sharpening  his  pen;  the  tenta- 
tiveness  of  his  attitude  being  emphasized  by  his 
turning  so  that  only  his  profile  is  seen.  The  face 
is  of  Jewish  cast  and  is  decidedly  handsome.  His 
attribute,  the  lion,  appears  in  the  form  of  a  little 
statuette  standing  on  a  shelf.  The  hands  of  St. 
Mark  are  extremely  well  painted.  Few  artists  have 
improved  upon  the  eclectics  in  their  ability  to  draw 
and  paint,  technically  speaking. 

St.  Luke  is  sitting  before  a  picture,  the  comer 
of  the  stretcher,  with  the  tacked  edge  of  the  can- 
vas, showing  at  the  left,  in  a  state  of  exultation, 
with  his  palette  on  his  thumb,  evidently  lost  in  rap- 
ture over  the  portrait  of  the  Virgin  which  he  has 
painted.  His  head  and  face  are  very  beautiful,  and 
the  lights  are  managed  in  a  particularly  artistic 
way.  One  wishes  that  the  artist  had  omitted  the 
little  heraldic  placque  hanging  on  the  wall,  con- 
taining a  bas-relief  of  a  resting  bull.  It  is  sjan- 
bolism  carried  to  a  rcductio  ad  absurdam. 

There  are  two  pictures  in  this  gallery  represent- 
ing Joseph  and  Potiphar's  wife.  The  subject  has 
been  treated  often,  but  in  most  cases  the  lady  has 
been  designed  on  a  rather  magnificent  scale,  and 
our  sympathies  go  out  to  the  youth  only  because 
he  is  struggling  in  the  toils  of  such  an  amazon. 


82       ube  Hrt  of  tbe  2Dres^en  Gallery 

But  the  interesting  item  about  both  of  these  pic- 
tures is  that  Potiphar's  wife  is  shown  as  a  sweet- 
looking  young  woman,  and  our  sympathy  for  Jo- 
seph takes  on  an  entirely  new  form.  One  of  these 
pictures  is  by  Simone  Cantarini,  and  is  well  painted. 
The  action  is  restrained  and  dignified.  There  is  a 
tender  pleading  in  the  girl's  face,  which  causes  us 
to  respect  Joseph  for  the  consistent  stand  which  he 
is  taking.  The  figures  are  in  fine  relief,  too,  and 
the  colours  rich,  laid  in  firm,  large  masses ;  green, 
blue,  and  yellow,  fearlessly  and  successfully  applied, 
as  few  would  have  dared  to  attempt. 

The  other  view  of  the  same  subject  is  more  emo- 
tional ;  it  is  to  be  seen  in  the  fourth  cabinet,  and  Is 
octagonal  in  form.  It  displays  Joseph,  subjected 
to  a  great  strain,  certainly;  its  painter,  Carlo  Ci- 
gnani,  has  drawn  him  with  both  hands  upraised  In 
protest,  while  the  mischievous  siren  has  him  firmly 
round  the  waist,  with  both  arms,  heartlessly  laugh- 
ing at  his  conscientious  efforts  to  free  himself. 
She  is  exceedingly  pretty,  and  we  are  really  quite 
glad  that  we  know  how  the  story  ends,  so  to  speak, 
or  our  suspense  would  be  positively  painful. 

Albanl's  Galatea  is  exquisite  in  colour,  but  in  no 
other  quality  is  it  remarkable;  while  scintillating 
with  a  delicious  golden  glow,  It  betrays  as  little  in- 
tellectual power  as  could  well  be  employed  In  the 
construction  of  a  picture. 


%atcv  lltaUan  Scbools  83 

Albani  is  represented  here  by  several  other  con- 
fections, quite  characteristically  lacking  in  thought, 
in  the  fourth  cabinet.  In  the  wreath  of  dancing 
cherubs  around  a  statuary  group  of  Cupids,  he  has 
drawn  a  pretty  set  of  playful  children.  Why  he 
should  have  felt  obliged  to  drag  in  the  scene  of  the 
Abduction  of  Proserpine  in  the  background,  with 
Ceres  hanging  on  to  the  back  of  the  car,  and  being 
very  literally  "  dragged  in,"  it  is  impossible  to  ex- 
plain. Two  cloud  medallions  on  the  painfully  blue 
sky,  display,  on  one  side,  Venus  and  Cupid,  and  on 
the  other,  an  amoretti  orchestra  in  full  blast.  The 
picture  is  delicately  painted  on  copper;  the  little 
dancing  loves  carry  with  them  the  emblems  of 
Pluto,  which  they  are  supposed  to  have  acquired 
while  his  attention  was  otherwise  engaged. 

The  Woman  taken  in  Adultery,  painted  by  Bar- 
tolommeo  Biscaino,  is  mellow  in  tone,  and  there  is 
fine  handling  in  the  head  of  the  old  man  at  the  left. 
The  Penitent  Magdalen,  by  Franceschini,  is  a  weak 
affair,  suggestive  of  a  repentance  based  on  physical 
collapse  and  formal  discipline.  There  is  a  certain 
dash  about  Domenico  Feti's  David  with  the  head  of 
Goliath,  inclining  to  the  style  of  the  Naturalists. 

There  are  two  canvases  of  Bernardo  Strozzi 
which  are  very  good ;  Rebecca  with  Abraham's  serv- 
ant at  the  Well  is  rich  and  effective.  Rebecca 
looks  as  if  she  were  a  charming  operatic  heroine  of 


84      Ube  art  ot  the  Dresden  6aUer^ 

the  seventeenth  century,  and  the  servant  is  dressed 
according  to  the  styles  of  the  same  period,  while 
the  stoutish  gentleman  in  the  background,  with  the 
well-waxed  moustache,  might  be  the  leading  tenor 
waiting  for  his  cue;  but  if  one  overlooks  these  little 
eccentricities  of  local  colour,  and  the  anachronisms 
in  setting,  the  picture  is  very  charming.  David 
with  Goliath's  head  is  also  good.  David  is  an 
"  old  friend,"  surely,  but  with  a  "  new  face,"  in- 
asmuch as  he  sports  a  moustache.  In  B,  there  is 
a  well-coloured  picture,  also  by  Strozzi,  of  a  lady 
playing  upon  a  bass  viol.  The  face  is  extremely 
beautiful. 

In  Procaccini's  Holy  Family  with  Angels  Bring- 
ing Fruit,  the  pigments  have  been  so  conscien- 
tiously chosen  that  there  is  not  a  crack  or  a  dis- 
colouration, which  is  rather  unusual  among  these 
later  men.     Procaccini  died  in  1626. 

Varotari,  who  formed  his  style  on  principles  of 
Titian,  did  better  work  in  his  Judith  with  the  Head 
of  Holofemes  than  was  accomplished  by  most  art- 
ists who  copied  painters  instead  of  nature.  There 
is  a  rich  use  of  deep  pink  in  the  striped  garment 
which  she  wears.  Varotari  may  be  seen  to  advan- 
tage, also,  in  the  Study  of  a  Female  Head,  No.  526, 
in  the  fifth  cabinet.  It  is  a  face  of  great  beauty, 
full  of  expression,  and  the  treatment  is  most  ef- 
fective. 


Xater  Utalian  Scbools  85 

There  is  a  lovely  Venus  Bathing-,  by  Antonio 
Trivia,  a  pupil  of  Guercino,  who  died  in  1699  in 
Munich.  A  satyr  and  Cupid  are  in  attendance.  It 
is  almost  as  soft  as  a  Correggio. 

Lavinia  Fontana  was  one  of  the  decadent  paint- 
ers, —  one  of  the  few  women  of  that  time  who 
practised  the  arts.  She  lived  from  1552  and  1602. 
She  was  daughter  and  pupil  of  Prospero  Fontana, 
who  founded  a  school  in  the  late  sixteenth  century. 
The  father  is  here  seen  in  No.  115,  a  Holy  Family 
with  St.  Cecilia;  while  Lavinia's  Holy  Family  with 
Elizabeth  and  John  is  very  original  in  composition. 

In  the  sixty-fourth  cabinet  is  a  striking  series 
of  pictures  representing  the  Seven  Sacraments. 
They  are  painted  by  Giuseppe  Maria  Crespi,  and 
are  very  bold  and  effective.  The  handling  is  ex- 
tremely clever,  and  broad,  crisp,  and  modern  in 
feeling.  The  paint  is  heavy,  and  the  lights  loaded 
thickly.  The  fluttering  robes  of  the  priests  contrast 
charmingly  with  the  brown  habits  of  the  friars. 
These  pictures  should  be  examined  attentively. 

Among  the  decorative  spots  in  this  hall,  E,  is 
the  Judgment  of  Paris,  by  Pietro  Liberi,  —  fluffy, 
soft,  and  pink,  —  a  dainty  canvas  for  its  size ! 
Liberi  was  a  follower  of  Varotari.  This  shows 
how  art  "bred  in"  in  the  seventeenth  century! 

There  are  few  collections  in  which  Guido  Reni 
is  as  well  represented  as  in  Dresden.     There  are 


86      ube  Hrt  of  tbe  H)res&en  Gallery 

hardly  any  of  his  usual  mawkish  traits  to  be  seen 
in  his  pictures  here,  and  almost  all  of  the  works  are 
his  best  productions.  In  the  large  hall,  first,  is  his 
Reclining  Venus,  with  Cupid.  This  picture  is  fa- 
miliar to  all  lovers  of  this  artist,  but  can  never  fail 
to  be  positively  enchanting  to  look  at,  whether  for 
the  first  time  or  not.  There  is  a  certain  airy  deli- 
cacy throughout  that  is  almost  like  the  substance  of 
a  dream.  The  sweet,  slender  girl  and  the  polite, 
smiling  Cupid  are  among  the  loveliest  of  fanta- 
sies. The  atmosphere  is  unusually  soft,  and  the 
tones  so  golden  and  peachy,  leading  into  tender 
greens  and  a  strange,  dull  puce-colour,  that  one  feels 
that  any  criticism  is  unfair  except  such  as  shall 
recognize  it  either  as  a  jewel  or  as  a  vision. 

A  gentleman  of  Bologna  once  asked  Guido  Reni 
where  he  got  his  lovely  models,  whom  he  assuredly 
kept  to  himself,  for  no  other  artist  knew  who  they 
might  be!  Guido  replied,  in  a  mysterious  tone, 
"  Do  you  come  to  my  studio,  signor,  and  I  will 
show  you  my  beautiful  model."  So  the  nobleman 
tiptoed  up  to  the  studio  in  a  high  flutter  of  expec- 
tation. Imagine  his  chagrin  when  Guido  called  his 
colour-grinder,  "  a  great  greasy  fellow,  with  a  brutal 
look  like  the  devil,"  and  posed  him,  seated,  looking 
up  through  the  skylight.  Guido  then  took  a  pencil 
and  rapidly  sketched  a  beautiful  Magdalen  in  the 
same  position.     "  Dear  Count,"  he  said,  gravely, 


Xater  Utalian  Scbools  87 

turning  to  his  visitor,  "  say  to  your  '  other  artists ' 
that  a  beautiful  idea  must  be  in  the  imagination, 
and  in  that  case  any  model  will  serve." 

Guido  Reni's  half-length  figure  of  St.  Jerome 
is  splendid,  —  much  freer  than  his  work  generally 
is  in  handling. 

In  the  precious  cabinet.  No.  4,  are  no  less 
than  three  studies  of  the  head  of  Christ  crowned 
with  thorns.  The  best  is  the  smaller  oval,  of  the 
upturned  head  only,  No.  323.  Next  in  excellence 
is  No.  329,  No.  330  being  less  satisfactory  than  the 
others.  The  expression  of  human  suffering  domi- 
nated by  uplifting  zeal  and  faith  is  most  beautifully 
portrayed  in  the  first  of  these  heads. 

Less  pleasing,  but  exquisitely  modelled,  is  the 
Little  Bacchus  Drinking,  also  by  Guido,  with  its 
*'  pure,  bright,  decided  manipulation,"  to  which  at- 
tention has  been  called.  In  Guido's  Apparition  of 
Christ  to  His  Mother,  an  angel  bears  the  standard 
of  victory,  and  Adam  and  Eve  are  seen  behind  the 
Saviour. 

Here  also  is  a  Magdalen,  —  one  of  the  many  re- 
pentant cave-dwellers  in  this  gallery,  —  by  Fran- 
cesco Gessi,  a  pupil  of  Guido  Reni.  It  is  a  trivial 
affair. 

The  Mater  Dolorosa  of  Solimena  is  rather  better 
work  than  some  of  this  school.  There  is  a  replica 
of  it  in  America,  in  the  possession  of  the  writer. 


88      ube  Brt  of  tbe  BrcsDen  Gallery 

The  excellent  and  spirited  Satyr  and  Girl  with  a 
Basket  of  Fruit,  which  is  now  pronounced  to  be  by 
Rubens,  is  largely  the  work  of  the  master's  own 
hand;  it  was  formerly  catalogued  as  a  Jordaens. 
It  is  almost  the  same  as  one  in  Vienna,  and  is  ar- 
bitrarily hung  in  this  place. 

In  the  fifth  cabinet,  Carlo  Dolci's  St.  Cecilia  really 
deserves  her  popularity.  The  picture  is  lovely,  if 
it  does  seem  a  little  insipid  to  lovers  of  another 
school  of  art.  The  Daughter  of  Herodias,  too,  is 
a  good  example  of  Dolci's  "  far  niente !  "  The 
lady  is  somewhat  encumbered  with  Italian  superflu- 
ity of  dressy  clothes  for  anything  very  active  in  the 
way  of  a  dance,  besides  which  she  is  heavy  and  sad 
looking  —  but  one  must  not  expect  thought  on 
such  trifling  matters  from  Carlo  Dolci ! 

Carlo  Dolci's  Saviour  Blessing  the  Bread  and 
Wine  may  have  a  religious  appeal  for  some 
natures;  if  so,  I  would  not  wish  to  interfere  with 
any  good  that  it  may  accomplish.  As  a  work  of 
art,  it  has  high  finish,  like  a  varnished  tempera,  and 
is  richly  coloured.  The  table-cloth  obtrudes  itself 
too   strongly  into  the   composition. 

Carlo  Dolci  made  a  solemn  vow  never  to  paint 
any  but  religious  subjects :  as  it  were,  dedicating 
his  pencil  to  the  Virgin.  His  Madonnas,  however, 
were  frequently  portraits  of  Madelina  Baldinucci. 
He  was  of  a  melancholy  turn  and  seems  to  have 


Xater  Utalian  Scbools  89 

had  a  strangely  active  conscience.  While  the  guests 
were  assembled,  on  the  day  of  his  own  wedding,  it 
is  said  that  the  bridegroom  was  missing ;  and,  upon 
his  being  sought,  he  was  discovered  prostrate  be- 
fore a  crucifix  in  the  Church  of  the  Annunziata. 

The  Eclectics  were  opposed  by  another  school, 
originating  in  the  Neapolitan  district ;  these  painters 
were  known  as  the  Naturalists,  and  were  headed 
by  the  dashing  Michelangelo  Amerighi,  or  Cara- 
vaggio,  who,  born  in  1569,  was  a  successful  artist 
of  the  wild  and  tempestuous  school  which  saw  only 
the  stern  side  of  "  nature,"  and  depicted  her  chiefly 
in  storm  and  stress.  Human  nature  was  seen  by 
him  in  the  same  way.  We  have  here  two  of  Cara- 
vaggio's  best  pictures;  the  first  is  the  Christ  and 
St.  Sebastian,  which  is  a  splendid  study  in  light  and 
shade. 

The  Cheat,  which  is  to  be  seen  in  replica  in  the 
Sciarra  Palace  in  Rome,  and  elsewhere,  is  one  of  the 
most  popular  works  of  the  whole  Naturalist  school. 
The  human  nature  here  depicted  is  depressing.  Two 
youths,  so  far  sunk  in  vileness  as  to  combine  to 
ruin  an  innocent  boy,  are  playing  cards  with  him : 
or  rather,  one  handles  the  cards,  while  the  older 
fellow,  standing  behind  the  unsuspecting  victim,  is 
holding  up  fingers  by  way  of  a  signal  to  his  con- 
federate. The  types  are  well  chosen  for  their  pur- 
pose, and  are  finely  studied.     The  poor  little  dupe, 


9°      tlbe  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresden  (Balleri? 

a  youth  with  a  sweet  expression,  and  ignorant  of  the 
ways  of  villainy,  is  poring  over  his  cards,  while  the 
boy  opposite,  who,  by  the  way,  has  one  card  retained 
in  his  other  hand,  lifts  his  mean-spirited,  sordid 
eyes  to  observe  the  signal  given  by  the  man  in  the 
shadow,  whose  sinister  eyes  are  all  that  show 
above  his  cloak,  as  he  raises  two  fingers  in  mystic 
information.  It  is  well  for  the  victim  that  he  does 
not  turn  and  discover  the  treachery,  —  it  is  better 
for  him  to  lose  his  money  than  his  life,  as  would 
probably  follow,  if  he  were  to  become  a  menace  to 
their  secrecy.  The  man  in  the  background  has  a 
dagger  ready  for  any  such  emergency.  The  tones 
of  the  picture  are  deep  and  rich,  in  accordance  with 
the  gruesome  subject. 

The  Venus  bending  over  the  body  of  Adonis, 
by  Alessandro  Turchi,  known  as  I'Orbetto,  is  a 
much  more  natural  goddess  than  that  of  Guercino, 
and  better  painted.  Another  picture  by  I'Orbetto, 
David  with  the  head  of  Goliath,  is  a  fine,  spirited 
work,  and  has  been  restored  to  the  master,  after 
doubt  having  been  thrown  on  its  authenticity.  The 
face  of  the  youth  is  very  beautiful.  The  attitude, 
too,  is  original  and  full  of  vigour.  When  one  is 
in  the  forty-third  cabinet,  the  Stoning  of  Stephen 
should  be  noted,  also  by  Alessandro  Turchi.  It  is 
extremely  interesting. 

Carlo  Maratti's  Virgin  bending  over  the  Infant 


Xater  "fftaltan  Scbools  91 

in  a  Manger,  is  in  Room  B,  It  is  a  painting  which, 
though  it  lacks  strength,  is  so  charming  an  arrange- 
ment of  chiaroscuro,  and  so  exquisite  a  study  of 
infancy,  that  it  deserves  special  notice.  The  faces 
of  the  Virgin,  Child,  and  cherubs,  are  all  fore- 
shortened at  extreme  angles,  and  there  can  be 
no  doubt  about  the  effect  being  very  skilfully 
managed. 

Francesco  Furini  could  paint  exquisite  heads, 
and  had  a  natural  comprehension  of  grace,  which, 
though  sometimes  overdone,  is  always  present  in 
his  works.  There  is  a  sweet,  cool-toned  little  St. 
Cecilia  here,  with  a  gash  in  her  neck.  Furini  died 
in  1649.    He  was  a  follower  of  Matteo  Roselli. 

In  the  forty-fifth  cabinet  a  quaint  pair  of  pictures 
may  be  seen,  by  Castiglione,  a  Genoese  of  the 
seventeenth  century.  Tliey  display,  respectively, 
the  Animals  going  into  Noah's  Ark,  and  the  Re- 
turn of  Jacob.  Their  technique  is  most  curious. 
They  are  painted  in  strange  little  long  dabs,  almost 
like  stitches  in  thick  wool.  The  animals  selected  to 
accompany  Noah,  on  this  occasion,  are  goats,  rab- 
bits, cats,  guinea-pigs,  and  other  domestic  crea- 
tures. The  barn-yard  fowls  are  introduced,  but 
Castiglione  is  discreet  in  not  attempting  to  portray 
the  fiercer  beasts,  with  whom  he  had  no  personal 
acquaintance.  There  is  no  elephant,  no  phoenix, 
and  no  rhinoceros.     It  is  really  only  a  plain  farm- 


92       Ube  Brt  of  tbe  BresOen  ©allerp 

yard  scene,  to  which  a  more  important  name  has 
been  tacked,  to  make  it  seem  a  more  significant 
work. 

The  amusing  portrait  supposed  to  be  Salvator 
Rosa,  by  himself,  appears  to  me  to  be  genuine, 
although  the  authenticity  is  questioned.  Salvator 
is  generally  classed  among  the  Naturalists  of 
Naples,  but  a  review  of  his  early  career  will  prove 
that  he  is  actually  the  product  of  no  school,  though 
his  affiliations  were  with  these  painters  in  later  life. 
He  was  original,  and  almost  self-taught.  This 
portrait  represents  him  with  an  ape  on  his  shoulder. 
When  Salvator  Rosa  was  born,  the  one  thing  upon 
which  his  parents  were  decided,  was,  that  he  should 
not  be  a  painter.  Both  his  father  and  mother  were 
members  of  a  family  of  indigent  artists,  and  they 
decided  that  he  should  be  brought  up  in  the  Church. 
They  named  him  Salvator,  because,  as  an  Italian 
divine  says,  "  Never  has  it  been  known  that  God 
permitted  the  devil  to  torture  in  hell  a  man  who 
bore  his  name."  It  is  to  be  hoped  that  Salvator 
did  not  break  this  interesting  record. 

His  whole  childhood  was  one  of  protest  against 
the  calling  that  had  been  chosen  for  him;  his  one 
aim,  that  of  freedom.  From  the  time  when,  as  a 
baby  in  swaddling  bands,  he  was  hung  up  behind 
the  door  to  be  out  of  the  way  (as  is  still  the  fate 
of    some    ambitious    Italian    babies    when    their 


SALVATOK  ROSA.  —  PORTRAIT  OF  HIMSELF 


Xater  Utalian  Scbools  93 

mothers  are  busy),  he  asserted  himself,  and  longed 
to  stalk  abroad;  this  he  did  just  as  soon  as  it  was 
possible  for  him  to  venture  forth  upon  his  own  legs, 
and  then  he  was  known  as  the  imp  of  the  neigh- 
bourhood. 

When  he  was  old  enough  to  be  taught,  he  was 
subjected  to  the  discipline  of  a  monastic  training, 
—  he  was  punished  for  making  charcoal  sketches 
on  the  sacred  spandrels  in  the  cloisters.  He  was 
obliged  to  abandon  the  jaunty  Italian  costume  of 
the  period  for  the  hampering  cowl;  but  all  was 
under  protest,  and  his  behaviour  was  so  obstreper- 
ous that  the  pious  brothers,  quite  unable  to  manage 
him,  sent  him  forth  in  disgrace,  in  their  own  self- 
defence.  Thus,  instead  of  bringing  peace  and  bless- 
ing upon  his  injudicious  parents,  who  had  persist- 
ently pushed  him  in  the  wrong  direction,  he  re- 
turned home  under  the  ban  of  a  prodigal  son,  and, 
this  situation  proving  highly  distasteful  to  his  rest- 
less spirit,  he  allied  himself  with  the  profession 
which  was  the  special  abhorrence  of  his  father  and 
mother,  and  turned  to  Nature  for  his  guidance  in 
art.  He  became  a  painter  by  profession,  and  wan- 
dered off  into  the  picturesque  country  which  was 
so  near  him,  in  search  of  inspiration  and  subjects 
for  pictures. 

As  might  have  been  foreseen,  the  headstrong 
youth,  travelling  about  unprotected,  fell  a  prey  to 


94      Ube  Htt  ot  tbe  Dresben  Gallery? 

brigands.  Whether  these  terrible  men  held  him 
because  his  artistic  ability  proved  to  be  a  source 
of  income  to  them,  or  whether  he  himself  found 
their  society  congenial,  at  any  rate,  Salvator  Rosa 
took  up  a  residence  with  the  banditti  of  the  Abruzzi 
for  some  time.  These  bandits  were  not  highway 
robbers  in  the  usual  sense,  but  rather  a  band  of 
outlaws  who  held  a  considerable  position  in  the 
mountains.  His  life  among  these  wild  votaries 
of  Nature  helped  him  to  form  his  style,  and  to  store 
his  memory  and  imagination  for  life  with  the  ter- 
rible and  magnificent  ideals  for  which  he  afterward 
stood.  As  in  our  own  day,  a  follower  of  any  of  the 
arts  is  honoured  less  for  perfection  than  for  orig- 
inality, so  the  fame  of  Salvator  rested  on  his  pic- 
tures, full  of  the  august  elemental  passions,  and  the 
weird  desolation  of  the  forces  of  Nature,  causing 
an  entirely  new  sensation  among  the  connoisseurs 
who  had  been  buying  Carracci's  saints  and  Guide's 
Magdalens. 

To  cause  a  new  sensation  is  the  key-note  to  suc- 
cess in  any  art.  Salvator  Rosa  did  not  base  his 
manner  on  any  that  had  gone  before;  it  was  the 
ebullition  of  a  free  spirit  expressing  its  own  per- 
sonal interpretation  of  nature  both  animate  and  in- 
animate. The  melancholy  of  the  wilderness;  the 
dominance  of  the  hurricane ;  the  dark  mystery  of 
forests;    these  were  the  subjects  which  he  chose 


Xater  Utalfan  Scbools  95 

to  portray,  and  he  was  the  first  man  at  that  time 
to  begin  his  artistic  career  with  that  aim. 

But,  aUhough  fortune  finahy  smiled  upon  this 
original  painter,  there  were  many  years  when  his 
labours  were  unpaid,  and  he  hardly  knew  where 
to  turn  for  support.  He  made  the  journey  to 
Rome  chiefly  on  foot;  the  expenses  of  a  life  in 
that  city  were  so  much  more  exacting  than  those 
of  the  life  to  which  he  had  been  accustomed,  that 
it  proved  almost  impossible  for  him  to  live  there 
at  first.  He  has  left  us  an  interesting  manuscript : 
it  is  a  burlesque  cantata,  setting  forth  his  condition, 
from  which  it  will  be  amusing  to  make  a  few  ex- 
tracts. 

"  Yet  from  my  first-drawn  sigh,  through  life, 
I've  waged  with  Fate  eternal  strife  ; 
Have  toiled  without  reward  or  gain, 
And  wooed  the  arts  —  but  wooed  in  vain. 
For  while  to  Hope  I  fondly  trust, 
I  scarce  can  earn  my  daily  crust. 

While  as  I  saunter  through  the  court 
I  grow  the  jesting  page's  sport, 
For  threadbare  coats  meet  no  .respect, 
And  challenge  only  cold  neglect. 

In  Summer  when  the  dog-star  glows, 
I'm  dressed  as  though  the  Tiber  froze  : 
For  this  you'll  guess  the  ready  reason  — 
I've  but  one  suit  for  every  season ! 


96      Ube  Brt  ot  tbe  H)res^en  (Ballerg 

Yet  when  my  frozen  spirits  play, 
And  Fancy  lends  a  genial  ray, 
My  pencil  in  its  wanton  sport, 
Brings  the  well-freighted  bark  to  port! 
Bestows  fair  sites  on  whom  I  please, 
Raises  rich  leafy  woods  with  ease : 
But,  of  such  varied  wealth  the  maker, 
I  work,  and  starve,  without  an  acre  ! 

For,  take  it  on  Salvator's  word, 
Of  the  rich,  noble,  vulgar  herd, 
Few  estimate,  and  few  require 
The  painter's  zeal,  the  poet's  fire. 
The  surest  road  to  recompense 
Is  to  conceal  superior  sense." 


Later  in  life  prosperity  awaited  him,  and  his 
works  became  fashionable,  and  he  was  able  to  drive 
with  his  wife  and  child  in  his  own  carriage;  all 
of  which  things  connote  success.  But  if  Salvator 
painted  his  own  portrait,  of  which  there  is  some 
doubt,  in  this  amusing  study  in  Dresden,  he  evi- 
dently retained  his  cynical  ideas. 

When  Salvator  Rosa  was  aging,  and  could  not 
exercise,  he  would  express  his  cravings  for  free 
open-air  life  and  solitude,  exclaiming,  "  How  I  hate 
the  sight  of  every  spot  that  is  inhabited !  "  His 
illness  was  an  especially  trying  one  to  his  tempera- 
ment. It  was  accompanied  by  great  suffering  from 
cold.  He  wrote  to  a  friend  at  that  time :  "  I  have 
suffered  two  months  of  agony  even  with  the  ab- 


Xater  Utalian  Scbools  97 

stemious  regimen  of  chicken  broth !  My  feet  are 
two  lumps  of  ice,  in  spite  of  the  woollen  hose 
which  I  have  imported  from  Venice.  There  is  not 
a  fissure  in  my  house  that  I  am  not  daily  employed 
in  diligently  stopping  up :  and  yet  with  all  this  I 
cannot  get  warm."  To  our  ears,  his  trials  explain 
themselves !  A  man  trying  to  live  on  an  exclusive 
diet  of  chicken  broth,  in  a  house  with  such  cracks 
that  they  had  to  be  stuffed  every  day,  elicits  our 
sympathy!  No  wonder  the  poor  fellow  could  not 
get  warm! 

Luca  Giordano,  who  was  named  Fa  Presto,  on 
account  of  his  rapid  execution,  may  be  seen  in  all 
sorts  of  rampant  and  theatrical  display  in  Dresden. 
A  few  of  his  works  are  interesting;  in  an  early 
picture,  a  study  of  St.  Jerome,  No.  481  in  H,  the 
lights  are  very  striking;  and  the  Virgin  and  Child, 
No.  489,  is  really  extremely  clever.  The  technical 
treatment  is  original.  The  canvas,  which  is  ex- 
tremely rough,  is  first  coated  with  a  kind  of  shellac 
or  varnish,  and  the  paint  then  applied,  very  thin, 
so  that  it  lies  only  on  the  salient  points.  The  touch 
is  broad,  and  the  whole  most  effective.  The  colour 
is  in  this  way  diluted  with  a  soft  brownish  haze. 
There  are  also  good  brown  tones  in  the  portrait  of 
Fa  Presto  himself.  No.  494,  which  may,  however, 
have  been  rendered  by  a  pupil. 

Here  is  another  repentant  Magdalen  in  her  cave, 


98      Ube  Brt  ot  tbe  S)res&en  (Bailer^ 

by  Cagnacci.  A  curious  incident  is  treated  in  a 
picture  by  Mattia  Preti  (446),  representing  the  In- 
credulity of  Thomas;  the  Lord  is  himself  guid- 
ing the  hand  of  Thomas  into  the  wound  in  his 
side. 

Notice,  in  Cabinet  forty-eight,  what  good  lights 
there  are  on  the  face  of  a  portrait  by  Fra  Vittore 
Ghislandi,  No.  547;  but  the  picture  is  a  copy  of 
a  portrait  of  himself  by  Rembrandt,  so  the  credit 
is  not  due  to  the  Italian. 

Here  is  a  large  canvas  dealing  with  the  subject 
of  the  Three  Kings  before  Herod.  It  is  painted  by 
Conca.  There  is  much  flourish  and  some  scram- 
bling in  this  crowded  scene;  it  is  not  especially 
attractive.  The  black  King  stands  before  Herod, 
holding  out  his  hand  as  if  he  were  inviting  the 
King  to  act  as  palmist!  Conca  was  famous  for 
certain  pictures  painted  in  the  Bernardine  monas- 
tery of  Valdeiglesias,  and  several  other  series  of 
paintings  elsewhere.  There  is  some  likelihood  that 
he  studied  in  Florence,  for  there  is  a  Florentine 
feeling  visible  in  most  of  his  work.  The  Christ 
on  the  Cross  between  The  Virgin  and  St.  John  is 
attributed  to  him  by  some  critics,  although  it  is 
catalogued  still  as  uncertain.  It  may  be  seen  in 
the  forty-third  cabinet. 

Down-stairs  is  a  series  of  smaller  rooms,  num- 
bered thirty-nine  to  forty-three,  and  here  may  be 


Xater  "IFtalian  Scbools  99 

seen  some  more  of  the  late  Italians.  It  seems  best, 
however,  to  treat  of  these  at  the  same  time  with 
the  Pastels  and  Miniatures,  which  are  also  on  the 
ground  floor. 


CHAPTER    IV. 


SPANISH    MASTERS 


The  early  Spanish  idea  of  art  is  clearly  indicated 
in  a  sentiment  expressed  by  the  ecclesiastics  of 
Seville  when  the  Cathedral  was  rebuilt  in  1401. 
"  Let  us  build  a  Church,"  said  they,  "  which  shall 
cause  us  to  be  taken  for  madmen  by  those  who 
come  after  us."  Such  an  ambition  was  destined 
to  express  itself,  and  it  soon  spread  to  other  cities 
and  in  other  branches  of  the  arts  besides  architec- 
ture. 

Curious  stories  are  told  of  the  miraculous  in- 
spiration of  artists.  When  actual  visions  of  celes- 
tial beings  did  not  vouchsafe  to  descend  and  sit  for 
them,  as  was  frequently  understood  to  happen, 
other  means  of  revelation  were  employed.  There  is 
an  instance  of  a  sculptor,  who,  desirous  of  carving 
an  image  of  the  Virgin,  fell  asleep  in  discourage- 
ment at  the  inadequacy  of  his  own  sketches.  He 
was  roused  from  his  slumbers  by  a  voice,  saying: 
"Awake  and  rise:  and  out  of  that  log  of  wood 
blazing  on  the  hearth,   shape  the  thought  within 


Spanisb  /iDasters  loi 

thee,  and  thou  shalt  obtain  the  desired  image." 
Much  elated,  the  artist  extinguished  the  brand, 
and  out  of  it  he  hewed  what  has  been  designated 
"  a  miracle  of  art  "  —  a  figure  of  the  Virgin  which 
gave  great  satisfaction  to  the  royal  personage  who 
had  ordered  it.  It  certainly  fulfilled  the  prophecy 
regarding  a  "  tree  stock  "  which  "  shall  be  for  a 
man  to  burn  .  .  .  and  of  the  residue  thereof  he 
maketh  himself  a  god !  " 

Spanish  art  is  distinguished  for  its  severity  and 
its  decency:  an  intended  if  misguided  religious 
veneration,  and  absolute  success  in  technical 
achievement.  Superstitious  unquestioning  faith  in 
the  physical  miracle  led  to  the  belief  in  legendary 
anecdotes  of  a  most  fantastic  nature.  It  was  told, 
and  firmly  believed,  that  a  painter  had  been  struck 
blind  for  venturing  to  attempt  to  "  restore  "  a  sacred 
picture  which  had  been  executed  by  St.  Luke.  Dur- 
ing the  plague  at  Malaga,  in  1649,  ^  figure  of 
Christ  at  the  Column  suddenly  proved  to  be  mirac- 
ulous, curing  people  of  their  diseases  all  through 
the  week,  and  sweating  every  Friday!  This  was 
taken  as  an  omen  that  the  artist  who  had  wrought 
the  image  would  soon  be  taken  to  heaven ;  and 
sure  enough,  the  poor  stone-mason  who  had  carved 
it  succumbed  to  the  plague  in  eight  days! 

Two  significant  legends  show  how  important  it 
is  that  an  artist,  if  he  intends  to  portray  the  devil, 


I02     ube  Brt  ot  tbe  Bresben  Gallery 

should  balance  his  energies  by  also  painting  the 
Virgin  to  counteract  the  baleful  influence. 

The  first  of  these  stories  relates  to  a  young  friar, 
well  meaning,  but  easily  led.  He  had  often  painted 
the  Virgin,  and  rendered  her  as  a  perfect  queen 
of  beauty;  in  fact,  his  pictures  were  almost  what 
one  might  call  "  flattered  "  likenesses.  At  the  same 
time,  he  was  in  the  habit  of  making  most  grotesque 
and  uncomplimentary  portraits  of  the  devil,  rack- 
ing his  ingenuity  to  devise  new  features  of  hideous- 
ness  and  terror  to  introduce.  The  devil,  highly  dis- 
pleased at  these  liberties,  decided  to  catch  the  un- 
wary friar,  and,  knowing  his  special  weaknesses, 
he  made  himself  into  the  shape  of  a  pretty  young 
woman,  and  visited  the  artist,  with  proposals  of 
ardent  devotion.  The  young  friar,  rather  frail  in 
this  line,  readily  acceded  to  the  persuasions  of  the 
fair  one,  who,  however,  demanded  a  very  high 
price  for  her  favours,  —  no  less  than  the  jewelled 
reliquaries  in  the  convent  treasury.  The  young 
man,  overcome  by  the  charms  of  his  enchantress, 
was  rash  enough  to  give  her  what  she  asked  for. 
As  they  passed  through  the  cloisters  carrying  the 
treasures,  the  mean-spirited  devil  reassumed  his 
own  form,  and  began  calling,  "  Thieves !  Thieves !  " 
This  outcry  collected  a  number  of  the  monks  about 
the  deluded  friar,  and  there  seemed  no  doubt  that 
he  was  caught  stealing  the  convent  plate!     So  by 


Spanisb  /IDasters  103 

way  of  arresting  him,  the  brothers  tied  him  to  a 
pillar  in  the  cloister,  to  await  his  sentence,  and  then 
they  retired  until  morning"  should  dawn.  When 
the  poor  young  friar  was  left  alone,  the  devil  had 
a  most  satisfactory  revenge  upon  him,  twitting  him 
with  his  disappointment  in  love,  and  pointing  out 
how  completely  the  brethren  had  him  in  their  power. 
"  You'd  best  call  on  one  whom  you  have  treated 
better  than  you  have  me,  if  you  want  help  now!" 
sneered  Satan.  This  was  a  happy  suggestion.  In- 
stantly the  monk  called  upon  the  Virgin,  whom  he 
had  so  frequently  painted  with  so  much  admiration 
and  love,  to  rescue  him.  With  charitable  prompt- 
itude, the  Virgin  appeared  before  him,  and,  with- 
out stopping  to  analyze  whether,  after  all,  he  did 
not  deserve  just  about  what  he  was  getting,  she 
loosed  his  bonds,  and  helped  him  to  tie  the  devil 
up  in  his  place.  Then  with  triumph  she  conducted 
him  to  the  treasury,  where  the  stolen  reliquaries 
werj  restored  to  their  proper  positions.  In  the 
morning  the  young  friar  appeared  at  Matins  as  if 
nothing  had  happened,  and  when  the  monks  found 
the  sacred  vessels  in  the  treasury'  again,  they  be- 
lieved his  account  of  the  interference  of  a  higher 
power;  they  did  not  venture  to  veto  so  celestial 
a  favour,  and  he  was  allowed  to  go  free. 

The  second  narrative  is  even  more  dramatic;    it 
is  told  by  Lope  de  Vega.     The  hero  of  this  story 


I04     Ube  Brt  ot  tbc  Dresden  Gallery? 

was  not  a  monk,  but  a  secular  painter.  He  loved 
to  depict  these  two  opposing  types  —  the  Virgin 
and  the  devil  —  just  as  the  friar  had  done.  In  re- 
taliation, the  fiend  arranged  that  the  painter  should 
fall  in  love  with  the  wife  of  a  soldier,  and  elope 
with  her.  While  this  plan  was  being  carried  out, 
and  when  the  guilty  pair  had  progressed  as  far  as 
the  market-place,  the  evil  one  started  all  the  bells 
in  the  city  to  ringing,  and  then,  in  the  guise  of  a 
mortal,  he  "  grinned  like  a  dog  and  ran  about  the 
city,"  spreading  the  news.  The  eloping  parties 
were  thrown  into  prison  (in  separate  dungeons,  of 
course),  and  the  indignant  husband  visited  his  faith- 
less wife,  and  cut  off  her  hair  prior  to  her  inevitable 
execution  on  the  day  following.  The  painter,  ad- 
dressing a  petition  to  Our  Lady,  met  with  instant 
success.  In  recognition  of  his  Hfe  of  devotion  to 
her  image,  she  at  once  freed  both  of  the  lovers, 
and  restored  them  to  their  respective  homes.  When 
the  soldier  awoke  in  the  morning  and  saw  his  wife, 
with  her  full  complement  of  hair  again  growing  on 
her  head,  he  was  overcome  with  amazement.  The 
lady,  with  ready  tact,  appeared  surprised  at  his 
questions,  and  remarked  that  the  strange  things  of 
which  he  accused  her  had  not  really  occurred  during 
the  night,  but  must  have  been  a  dream.  He  could 
not  quite  believe  this :  he  went  out  and  asked  his 
friends,  who  all  testified  to  having  witnessed  the 


Spanisb  /IDasters  105 

scene.  But  when  they  found  the  painter  also  com- 
fortably installed  in  his  home,  quietly  painting  a 
likeness  of  his  deliverer,  he  also  upheld  the  state- 
ment of  the  clever  lady  with  whom  he  had  so  nearly 
run  away.  "  It  was  undoubtedly  a  dream  :  if  more 
than  one  had  dreamed  it,  that  was  a  coincidence, 
surely,  but  strange  things  often  happened !  "  So 
the  ancient  story  ends :  "  Thus  was  the  devil  once 
more  foiled,  and  thus  the  citizens  who  had  been 
roused  by  the  bells,  the  pursuers  who  had  captured 
the  truants,  the  turnkey  who  had  barred  the  prison- 
ers, the  husband  who  had  clipped  the  tresses,  and 
the  gossips  who  had  told  the  tale  were  made  to 
believe  by  the  merits  of  Our  Lady  that  they  had 
dreamed  a  strange,  vivid,  and  unanimous  dream ! " 
The  questions  of  justice  and  ethics  do  not  enter  at 
all  into  these  annals.  Faith  did  everything,  and 
works  were  entirely  discounted  in  Spain  in  those 
days. 

Owing  tc  the  strictly  devotional  character  of  his 
subjects,  Luis  de  Morales  was  called  the  Divine 
Morales.  His  picture  of  Christ,  about  to  be  led 
away,  with  a  rope  around  his  neck,  and  his  face 
expressive  of  suffering,  is  a  characteristic  example 
of  this  artist's  manner.  Luis  de  Morales  was  born 
in  Badajos  early  in  the  sixteenth  century;  he 
founded  a  school,  his  life  being  otherwise  unevent- 
ful.   There  are  not  very  exact  records  about  him ;  it 


io6     ubc  Hrt  of  tbe  5)rest)en  (Ballerp 

is  probable  that  he  studied  in  Toledo  or  Valladolid, 
and  certainly  worked  a  great  deal  in  Estramadura, 
In  1564  he  went  to  Court  in  order  to  paint  some 
pictures  for  the  Convent  which  was  founded  in 
connection  with  the  Escorial.  In  after-life,  when 
he  was  old  and  poor,  the  King,  noticing  his  condi- 
tion, gave  him  a  purse  of  money,  saying :  "  For 
dinner.  Morales."  Morales,  with  ready  wit,  asked, 
"And  for  supper.  Sire?"  by  which  exercise  of 
alertness  he  secured  a  larger  amount.  The  chron- 
icler Palomino  commends  "  the  discreet  wit  of  the 
vassal  in  profiting  by  the  occasion,  and  speaking 
at  the  right  time,  which  is  a  great  felicity."  The 
town  of  Badajos,  where  he  was  bom  and  where  he 
died,  did  honour  to  his  memory  so  far  as  it  was 
able,  in  naming  a  street  after  Morales.  Morales 
is  considered  the  earliest  artist  of  the  Spanish  school 
who  employed  the  means  so  common  in  Italian  art 
of  fusing  into  his  pictures  poetical  and  ideal  ele- 
ments, instead  of  being  content  with  realism  and 
narrative.  He  painted  always  on  panel,  and  the 
picture  in  Dresden  is  no  exception  to  the  rule,  being 
on  wood,  and  therefore  not  of  large  measurements. 
His  finish  is  delicate,  and  the  example  is  interesting 
historically,  if  it  is  not  a  picture  calculated  to  attract 
or  please  the  eye.  Some  critics  see  in  his  work 
certain  qualities  which  suggest  Correggio. 

Pacheco,  the  prudish  Commissioner  of  the  Inqui- 


Spanisb  Masters  107 

sition  (of  whom  an  account  is  given  in  my  ''  Art 
of  the  National  Gallery  "),  finds  fault  with  Morales 
that  he  dared  to  depart  from  custom,  in  depicting 
the  Ecce  Homo  without  a  reed  in  the  hand  of 
Christ,  and  often  without  the  crown  of  thorns. 
Any  such  liberty  caused  Pacheco  genuine  discom- 
fort, so  entirely  was  his  freedom  of  thought  quelled 
by  the  consciousness  of  the  dignity  of  his  posi- 
tion ! 

Juan  de  las  Roelas  was  the  scion  of  a  noble 
Spanish  house;  he  may  have  been  the  son  of  the 
Admiral  de  las  Roelas.  Born  about  1559,  he  re- 
ceived a  college  education  in  Seville,  and  was  a 
painter  in  good  standing  in  161 6,  when  he  was 
recommended  as  Court  painter  to  Philip  III.,  being 
vouched  for  as  "  son  of  an  old  servant  of  the 
crown,"  and  "  A  virtuous  man  and  a  good  painter." 
Although  he  did  not  receive  this  post,  the  applica- 
tion is  testimoixy  to  his  excellence.  He  was  an 
ecclesiastic,  and  lived  an  uneventful  life,  chiefly  in 
Madrid  and  Seville,  until  his  death  in  1625.  His 
work  was  censured  by  Pacheco,  because  in  one  in- 
stance he  introduced  a  table  with  eatables  into  a 
picture  of  the  Education  of  the  Virgin,  which  was 
a  materialistic  touch  too  irreverent  for  the  soaring 
mind  of  Pacheco;  and  again,  because  in  a  Nativit}'-, 
the  Infant  Saviour  was  represented  with  no  clothes. 
Pacheco  indignantly  calls  attention,  not  without  a 


io8     u]jc  art  of  tbe  Bresben  (Bailer^ 

show  of  justice,  to  the  fact  that  no  mother  would  so 
imperil  the  life  of  a  new  baby  in  the  depths  of 
Winter!  This  painter  was  known  colloquially  as 
"  El  Clerigo  Roelas  "  and  also  as  "  El  Licenciado." 
His  picture  here  is  an  allegorical  rendering  of  the 
subject  of  the  Immaculate  Conception. 

Pedro  Orrente,  born  in  Murcia  in  the  late  six- 
teenth century,  was  the  author  of  the  picture,  Jacob 
and  Rachel  at  the  Well ;  he  was  usually  recognized 
as  a  cattle  and  sheep  painter,  and  figure  studies  are 
not  in  his  most  characteristic  vein. 

The  assignment  of  Spanish  pictures  of  this  period 
is  really  difficult ;  only  highly  cultivated  and  observ- 
ing critics  dare  to  pronounce  with  certainty  concern- 
ing them.  As  a  partial  explanation  of  this  difficulty, 
I  quote  from  a  description  of  the  condition  of  a 
Spanish  art  gallery  in  1841,  as  it  was  seen  by  Mme. 
Hahn-Hahn  on  a  visit  to  the  Seville  Museum.  "  It 
is  wretched,"  writes  this  lady,  "  to  see  how  these 
invaluable  jewels  are  preserved !  Unframed,  un- 
cleaned,  .  .  .  unprotected  .  .  .  they  lean  against 
the  walls,  or  stand  unprotected  in  the  passages 
where  they  are  copied.  Every  dauber  may  mark  his 
squares  upon  them,  to  facilitate  his  drawing  .  .  . 
the  threads  have  in  certain  cases,  begun  to  leave 
their  impression  on  the  picture.  .  .  .  Nothing  would 
be  easier  than  to  smuggle  out  .  .  .  small  pictures! 
A  painter  comes,  copies  them,  does  not  stand  upon 


Spanisb  /iDasters  109 

a  few  dollars  more  or  less,  —  takes  off  the  originals 
and  leaves  copies  behind  in  their  places — (they 
are  high  up  and  badly  lighted)  the  pictures  are  gone 
for  ever !  This  sort  of  proceeding  is  not  impossible 
here  ...  it  cannot,  of  course,  be  done  without  cor- 
ruption and  connivance  on  the  part  of  the  official 
guardian :  and  after  all,  one  has  hardly  courage  to 
lament  it !  The  pictures  are  in  fact  saved ;  they  are 
protected  and  duly  valued;  whilst  to  me  it  is  com- 
pletely a  matter  of  indifference  whether  a  custode 
on  account  of  this  sort  of  sin  suffer  a  little  more 
or  a  little  less  in  Purgatory!"  (It  sounds  very 
much  as  if  Mme.  Hahn-Hahn  had  herself  secured 
some  treasures  in  Spain!) 

Kugler  tells  an  anecdote  of  a  picture  dealer  in 
London  who  was  advertising  a  painting  by  Zuccaro. 
Upon  being  asked  if  it  were  a  genuine  example,  the 
dealer  replied,  "  Yes,  Zuccaro  or  Velasquez."  Upon 
hearing  surprise  expressed  at  this  strange  alterna- 
tive, he  added,  "  The  fact  is,  the  picture  came  from 
Spain,  and  Zuccaro  is  not  a  Spanish  master;  that 
is  the  only  reason  for  calling  it  a  Velasquez." 

It  was  only  through  war  and  stress  that  Spanish 
art  was  heralded  abroad.  During  the  War  of  In- 
dependence in  Spain,  many  paintings  were  taken  to 
France;  British  dealers  came  and  offered  money, 
and  acquired  many  of  the  rarest  treasures  in  the 
days  of  Moore  and  Wellesley.     The  French  and 


no     Ube  Brt  ot  tbe  S)rest>en  (Balleri? 

English,  with  cultivated  taste  and  excellent  judg- 
ment, collected  some  of  the  best  pictures  in  Spain, 

For  the  same  reason,  Spanish  paintings  were  not 
known  in  Europe  at  large;  Spagnoletto,  who 
worked  at  Naples,  was  almost  the  only  Spaniard 
who  was  known  out  of  his  own  country.  This  is 
one  thing  which  renders  the  school  more  individual 
and  interesting  than  most  of  the  other  schools, 
thoug"h  its  origins  were  later,  and  it  has  not  the 
splendid  historical  succession  of  Italy. 

Spanish  art  is  essentially  a  native  art,  developing 
from  ideals  of  Spain's  own  painters.  There  were 
few  travelling  artists,  either  Flemish,  Italian,  or 
German,  who  visited  Spain  to  help  to  introduce  new 
outside  influences.  Titian,  in  the  days  of  Charles 
v.,  was  one  of  the  few  with  whose  works,  outside 
their  own,  they  were  familiar.  In  Italy,  the  Flemish 
artists  were  constantly  coming,  and  in  Germany 
and  Holland,  the  Italians  frequently  made  visits. 

The  rage  for  relics  was,  of  course,  ravenous 
among  people  who  so  firmly  believed  in  the  miracu- 
lous. A  lady  in  waiting  of  Queen  Isabella  took  a 
mean  advantage  of  her  privilege,  when  she  was 
allowed  to  kiss  the  foot  of  the  body  of  St.  Isadore 
de  Labrador.  She  deliberately  bit  of¥  a  toe,  intend- 
ing to  carry  it  home  to  perform  private  miracles 
for  her;  but  she  was  "mysteriously  detained"  in 
the  church,  and  unable  to  move  or  go  home  until 


Spanisb  /iDasters  m 

she  had  relinquished  her  prize !  There  are  those  of 
us  who  are  blasphemous  enough  to  feel  that  this 
"  miraculous  detention  ''  might  be  accounted  for  on 
purely  natural  and  sordid  grounds ! 

The  Spaniards  were  great  realists.  One  painter 
was  commissioned  to  paint  a  picture  of  an  eagle 
which  had  been  caught  by  the  King's  fowlers;  the 
painting  was  so  realistic  that  the  original  attacked 
it,  and  tore  it  to  pieces  with  beak  and  talons !  The 
bird  was  kept  in  captivity  ever  after,  and  a  chron- 
icler says  he  often  saw  him,  alluding  to  ''  his  grave 
and  composed  manner  of  gazing,  which  showed  no 
little  grandeur  and  authority."  Quite  descriptive 
of  the  usual  manner  of  eagles  in  captivity. 

It  is  hardly  likely  that  the  figure  of  St.  Matthew, 
No.  680,  is  by  Francesco  Herrera  the  Elder;  the 
work  is  mediocre,  and  is  hardly  worthy  of  this  inter- 
esting painter.  Herrera  was  born  in  1576,  and  was 
the  teacher  of  Velasquez.  He  was  exceptionally 
free  in  his  style,  making  his  drawings  with  char- 
coal, and  working  in  a  broad,  bold  manner.  There 
is  a  tradition  that  when  he  was  without  an  assistant, 
he  employed  the  housemaid  to  lay  on  the  large 
values  of  colour,  he  afterwards  shaping  and  arrang- 
ing them.  This  theory  would  render  the  authen- 
ticity of  the  present  picture  more  plausible!  Her- 
rera was  also  a  worker  in  bronze.  Led  astray  by 
the  very  obvious  opportunity  which  this  afforded. 


112     Ube  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresden  Gallery? 

he  once  became  a  coiner  of  false  money.  He  was 
brought  before  the  King,  Philip  IV.,  who  pardoned 
him,  saying :  "  What  need  of  gold  and  silver  has 
a  man  with  your  talents?  You  are  free;  but  be 
careful  not  to  get  into  such  a  scrape  again !  "  Her- 
rera  was  such  a  stern  and  violent-tempered  man  that 
his  pupils  not  infrequently  fled  from  him.  Ve- 
lasquez is  said  to  have  been  one  of  these  truants; 
when  Herrera  went  to  Madrid  in  1650,  he  found 
his  errant  pupil  at  the  height  of  his  glory !  Herrera 
died  in  Madrid  in  1656. 

The  old  Spanish  proverb  says,  "  Where  there  are 
mares,  there  will  be  colts."  Ribera  and  Juan  de 
Ribalta  were  both  "  colts  "  in  this  sense,  —  pupils 
and  followers  of  the  older  Ribalta,  Francisco,  who 
was  a  leading  artist  of  the  school  of  Valencia.  We 
have  none  of  his  work  here,  but  his  son  Juan  is 
represented,  and  also  Ribera,  the  noted  Spagnoletto. 

Juan  de  Ribalta,  to  whom  the  picture.  No.  695, 
the  Mass  of  St.  Gregory,  is  attributed,  was  the  son 
of  Francisco  de  Ribalta,  and  was  born  in  Valencia 
in  1597.  He  was  a  most  precocious  child,  painting 
large  important  pictures  when  he  was  only  eighteen, 
an  altar-piece  of  the  Crucifixion,  now  in  the  Valen- 
cia Museum',  testifying  to  this  fact,  by  the  signa- 
ture, "Johannes  Ribalta  pingebat  et  invenit  18 
setates  suoe  anno  161 5."  He  worked  wnth  great 
rapidity,  as  is  often  the  case  with  painters  whose 


Spanfsb  /iDasters  113 

fathers  have  been  artists,  the  early  training  culti- 
vating great  technical  facihty  in  many  cases.  He 
died  very  young,  only  living  until  1628.  An  inter- 
esting old  picture  in  Oxford,  which  was  captured 
on  a  Spanish  sailing-vessel  (probably  destined  for 
some  port  where  this  painting  was  to  have  been  con- 
veyed by  order,  being  an  altar-piece),  is  now  as- 
signed to  Ribalta.  It  passed  as  a  Titian  at  one  time, 
and  has  been  attributed  by  critics  to  other  hands  at 
various  times. 

The  very  typically  Spanish  picture  of  St.  Francis 
and  St.  Bernard  supporting  St.  Gonzalo  is  by  Vin- 
cente  Carducho,  who,  though  born  in  Florence, 
painted  most  of  his  life  in  Madrid,  and  was  recog- 
nized as  a  master  of  that  school.  In  a  burst  of 
glory  above  in  the  heavens  the  Christ-child  is  seen, 
flanked  by  seraphs  and  a  multitude  of  heavenly 
beings.  St.  Gonzalo  stands,  his  lips  parted  and  a 
beatific  expression  of  joy  on  his  upturned  face,  hold- 
ing in  his  hands  the  model  of  a  building.  St.  Fran- 
cis and  St.  Bernard  raise  their  hands  in  amazement 
at  the  vision,  and  the  whole  composition  is  put 
together  very  well.  Carducho  was  also  a  writer  on 
art,  —  his  "  Dialogos  de  la  Pintura  "  are  most  inter- 
esting, though  rather  curious  than  instructive  at  the 
present  time.  There  are  eight  conversations,  sup- 
posed to  take  place  between  a  master  and  his  pupil, 
"  in  a  retired  spot  on  the  banks  of  the  murmuring 


114    XTbe  Brt  ot  tbe  Bres&en  (Bailer^ 

Manzanares."  Carducho  relates  many  anecdotes  of 
painters,  introducing  St.  Luke  as  casually  as  Ra- 
phael or  Michelangelo !  He  tells  of  one  picture  so 
affecting  in  its  loveliness  that  in  looking  upon  it 
"  hearts  became  eyes,  and  eyes  tears !  "  Carducho 
died  in  1638.  In  Lope  de  Vega's  tributary  sonnet 
on  the  occasion,  there  are  the  lines : 


"  Pens  scarce  had  dared  thy  glory  to  proclaim, 
No  brush  achieved  to  paint  thee  but  thine  own." 


Lope  de  Vega  seems  to  have  eulogized  all  the 
artists  of  his  day  in  similar  terms! 

Joseph  de  Ribera  was  born  in  Jativa  in  1588.  He 
is  usually  known  as  Lo  Spagnoletto,  and  is  often 
recognized  as  a  master  of  the  Neapolitan  school, 
because  he  lived  in  Naples  and  foimded  a  school 
there;  but,  as  will  be  seen,  he  was  a  Spaniard  by 
birth.  Naples  has  even  claimed  the  distinction  of 
having  produced  him,  but  the  baptismal  register 
proves  that  he  was  born  in  Jativa  on  January  12th, 
and  that  his  parents  were  Luis  Ribera  and  Marga- 
rita Gil.  He  was  educated  in  Valencia,  and  became 
a  pupil  of  Francisco  Ribalta.  His  appearance  in 
Italy  is  not  easily  accounted  for,  but  during  his 
youth  he  was  in  Rome,  and,  being  seen  by  a  philan- 
thropic Cardinal  to  be  almost  destitute,  he  was  taken 
by  the  kind  cleric  and  lodged  in  his  palace.    Ribera, 


Spanisb  /iDasters  "5 

however,  discovered  that  kixiiry  was  bad  for  him, 
—  he  was  less  easily  inspired  to  work  when  sur- 
rounded by  all  these  comforts,  so  he  left  the  Car- 
dinal, and  lived  simply  among  some  other  young 
struggling  artists,  among  whom  he  obtained  the 
pseudonym,  Lo  Spagnoletto.  Being  a  brawler  by 
nature,  he  got  into  trouble  in  Rome,  and  fled  to 
Naples,  where,  with  Caravaggio  and  others,  he 
formed  a  nucleus  for  a  school  of  extravagant  real- 
ists in  art.  Ribera  was  a  small  man,  —  hence  his 
diminutive  nickname,  —  but  full  of  force  and  fire. 
When  he  found  conversation  lag  in  company,  he 
would  throw  a  verbal  bomb  in  the  form  of  a  state- 
ment that  he  had  found  the  Philosopher's  stone. 
This  being  the  great  quest  of  the  daj^,  among  dilet- 
tanti, they  would  crowd  about  him,  and  ask  him 
to  show  it  to  them.  He  would  invite  them  to  his 
studio,  with  promises  of  enlightenment.  When  they 
arrived,  in  all  excitement,  on  the  following  morn- 
ing, Ribera  sent  his  servant  out  with  a  picture; 
they  waited;  in  a  short  while  the  servant  returned 
with  a  package  of  gold.  "  That  is  the  secret  of 
gold  making,"  Ribera  would  say,  "  I  do  it  by  paint- 
ing, you  by  serving  his  Majesty;  attending  to 
business  is  the  secret  of  the  truest  alchemy !  " 

Spagnoletto's  style  is  dashing,  and  he  is  often 
horrible  in  his  choice  of  subject.  The  flaying  of 
St.  Bartholomew  was  his  first  picture,  which  caused 


ii6     Ube  Hrt  ot  tbe  BresDen  Gallery 

a  great  stir  on  account  of  its  painful  realism;  other 
martrydoms  were  his  delight.  Byron  has  remarked 
how  — 

"...  Spagnoletto  tainted 
His  brush  with  all  the  blood  of  all  the  sainted  !  " 

One  of  Ribera's  daughters  eloped  under  very  dis- 
graceful circumstances.  She  was  a  pretty  girl,  and 
had  often  served  him  as  a  model.  Indeed,  the  nuns 
of  Sta.  Isabel  had  the  head  of  a  Madonna  by  Ribera 
painted  over  after  this  scandal  had  taken  place,  lest 
in  the  face  of  the  Virgin  any  one  might  trace  an 
unfortunate  likeness  to  the  frail  Maria  Rosa ! 

The  rest  of  Ribera's  works  here  are  all  strictly 
pleasing  in  subject.  A  beautiful  Diogenes  with  his 
lantern  (No.  682  in  Room  J)  is  supposed  to  be  a 
portrait  of  himself.  The  fact  that  Diogenes  is  so 
passive,  while  it  was  Ribera's  custom  to  emphasize 
any  possible  action  in  rendering  a  subject,  confirms 
the  judgment  of  those  who  have  pronounced  this 
work  a  portrait.  In  handling  it  is  magnificent: 
the  shadows  are  strong  and  virile.  Of  course,  as 
a  study  of  the  Greek,  it  is  absurd ;  there  is  no  sug- 
gestion of  any  classic  sentiment. 

St.  Peter  delivered  from  Prison  by  the  Angel  is 
a  beautiful  study  of  an  old  man.  The  face  and 
hands  are  splendidly  treated,  and  the  whirling  angel 
in  the  air  is  flying  in  a  delightfully  buoyant  manner. 


Spanisb  /IDasters  117 

We  are  fortunately  spared  Ribera's  most  savage 
mood  in  the  Dresden  collection.  The  martyrdom 
of  St.  Lawrence,  similar  to  that  in  the  Vatican,  is 
the  only  hint  of  horror  which  confronts  us.  And 
St.  Lawrence  is  so  exquisite  in  his  graceful  ecstasy 
of  abnegation,  that  there  is  little  heed  paid  to  the 
roaring  fire  to  which  he  is  being  conducted.  As  a 
study  of  flesh  and  chiaroscuro  it  is  admirable. 

St.  Francis  on  his  bed  of  thorns  is  hardly  a  com- 
fortable suggestion,  but  the  picture  is  mild  com- 
pared to  most  of  his  portrayals  of  human  suffering. 
Both  of  these  pictures  are  painted  in  thick  impasto, 
and  are  strenuous  in  action  and  feeling. 

But  the  loveliest  Ribera  in  Dresden  is  the  justly 
celebrated  St.  Agnes.  As  one  enters  the  hall  one's 
eyes  are  drawn  toward  the  simple  and  restrained 
figure,  so  unaffected  in  design,  so  straightforward 
in  its  gradations  of  all  tones  of  white  and  brown. 
The  saint  kneels  in  a  rather  awkward  attitude,  but 
her  expression  is  very  exalted.  The  angel  who  is 
bringing  a  sheet  to  cover  her  is  illuminated  by  the 
light  which  emanates  from  the  halo  which  is 
breathed  about  her.  The  artist  has  proved  in  this 
picture  that  he  could  be  poetic,  delicate,  and  appre- 
ciative of  all  virginal  loveliness  and  grace.  The 
picture  was  thought  to  represent  St.  Mai-y  of  Egypt, 
and  also  has  been  considered  as  a  Magdalen.  But 
it  is  now  recognized  as  a  St,  Agnes.     The  shading 


ii8     Ube  Brt  of  tbe  BresDen  Galleci? 

of  light  and  dark  whites  to  gold,  and  finally  into 
the  umber  darkness  at  the  left  of  the  figure,  could 
not  be  more  masterly  if  planned  by  a  modern 
"  problem  painter."  The  composition  is  quite  free 
from  accessories.  It  is  particularly  striking  in  its 
simplicity  and  unadorned  qualities,  so  rare  in  the 
art  of  its  period.  It  is  one  of  the  few  great  pic- 
tures with  only  one  interest.  In  many,  the  eye  can 
pick  out  various  separate  bits  of  equal  importance, 
practically  each  a  picture  in  itself.  Here  is  remark- 
able unity  and  limit  of  subject.  A  wonderful  ex- 
pression is  concentrated  in  the  eyes.  One  sees  them 
first  and  last ;  the  reverent  upturned  face  claims  all 
the  attention  of  the  observer.  Ribera  died  in  Naples 
in  1656. 

There  is  but  one  picture  by  Francesco  Zurbaran 
in  Dresden.  He  was  one  of  the  best  artists  of  the 
early  seventeenth  century  in  Spain.  Born  in  the 
country,  his  father  had  designed  him  for  the  plough, 
but  when  a  marked  talent  for  art  asserted  itself,  he 
very  wisely  sent  the  boy  to  Seville  to  study  with 
Juan  de  Roelas.  He  painted  many  monastic  sub- 
jects, being  employed  by  the  Carthusians  on  several 
occasions.  While  for  a  short  time  he  painted  at 
the  Court  of  Philip  IV.,  the  monarch  did  him  the 
honour  to  clap  him  on  the  back  and  congratulate 
him  upon  being  a  "  painter  of  kings  and  a  king  of 
painters."     Probably  this  was  Philip's  little  stock 


RIBERA.  ST.    AGNES 


Spanisb  /iDasters  119 

pleasantry  by  means  of  which  he  usually  won  the 
personal  affection  of  artists  who  appeared  at  Court. 
For  no  matter  how  sovereign  a  personage  a  man 
may  be,  —  no  matter  how  absolute  may  be  his  power 
over  the  very  lives  of  his  subjects,  —  he  is  seldom 
without  that  human  trait  of  longing  to  be  loved  for 
himself;  which  proves  how  much  stronger  love  is 
than  temporal  power,  when  even  Kings  will  strive 
for  it,  and  queens  will  jeopardize  crown  and  state 
for  it ! 

Zurbaran's  picture  here  is  a  characteristic  one, 
as  to  subject,  although  the  finish  of  it  is  rather  more 
polished  than  some  of  his  more  striking  figures, 
notably  the  Praying  Monk  in  London.  St.  Bona- 
ventura  is  seen  kneeling  before  the  Papal  Crown, 
offering  prayers  that  he  may  be  inspired  to  assist  the 
Cardinals,  as  he  has  been  requested  by  them,  in 
naming  the  next  Pope.  The  picture  was  originally 
believed  to  represent  St.  Francis  refusing  the  Papal 
Tiara,  but  this  latter  interpretation  has  been  put 
upon  it  by  the  scholars  who  are  the  best  judges. 

The  figure  of  the  Apostle  Paul,  by  Alonso  Cano, 
is  good  in  tone;  the  robes  are  of  rich  reds  and 
greens.  Cano  was  born  in  Granada  in  1601,  and 
painted  for  the  first  half  of  the  seventeenth  century. 
He  was  the  last  of  the  Spanish  votaries  to  all  three 
of  the  arts,  practising  painting,  sculpture,  and  archi- 
tecture.    His  life  was  eventful,  and  is  worth  re- 


I20    zbc  Hrt  ot  tbe  H)res5en  Gallery 

hearsing  briefly.  One  day  he  returned  to  his  home 
to  find  his  wife  lying  dead  on  her  bed,  her  body 
having  received  fifteen  stabs.  Her  hands  were 
gripped  full  of  human  hair.  A  servant  having  dis- 
appeared from  the  house  on  that  day,  the  murder 
was  charged  upon  him.  But  later  investigations 
revealed  that  Cano  himself  was  carrying  on  an 
intrigue,  which  would  have  made  the  death  of  his 
wife  timely  and  acceptable,  and  suspicion  turned 
abruptly  upon  him.  Alarmed,  he  fled  to  a  monas- 
tery, and,  after  spending  a  due  season  in  painting 
saints  and  leading  a  religious  life  as  it  was  popu- 
larly understood,  he  returned  to  his  home.  Here, 
however,  the  law  was  still  vigilant,  and  he  was 
seized  and  put  to  the  torture  to  make  him  confess. 
As  he  did  not  do  so,  he  was  acquitted  and  released. 
But  his  friend  Velasquez  believed  in  his  guilt,  al- 
though public  opinion  was  satisfied  by  the  test  of 
the  rack  and  screws.  So,  without  any  special  oppro- 
brium resting  upon  him,  Alonso  Cano  resumed 
work,  took  priest's  orders,  and  became  a  Canon  in 
the  Cathedral  of  Granada.  Here  he  employed  his 
talents  to  the  adornment  of  the  sanctuary,  and 
proved  himself  a  valued  member  of  the  staff.  While 
he  was  working  on  some  pictures  in  Malaga,  at  one 
time,  a  flood  descended  upon  the  city,  and  while  the 
clergy  were  all  collected  in  the  Cathedral  praying 
for  the  inundation  to  abate,  the  waters  rose  around 


Spanisb  /iDasters  121 

them  to  an  alarming  extent.  The  Bishop  was  so 
frightened  that  he  sought  refuge  in  the  great  organ ; 
when  Alonso  Cano  asked  him  why  he  did  so,  he 
repHed,  "  It  is  better  to  be  crushed  to  death  in  a 
dignified  great  machine  than  to  be  drowned  Hke 
a  rat!"  "Ah,  for  my  part,"  rephed  Cano,  with 
a  shrug,  "if  we  are  to  perish  Hke  eggs,  I  think  it 
matters  Httle  whether  we  are  poached  or  boiled ! " 
The  flood  subsided,  however,  leaving  the  Bishop 
safe  in  the  organ ! 

Cano  seems  to  have  been  of  a  generous  disposi- 
tion, and  no  one  ever  appealed  to  him  in  vain  for 
alms.  If  he  was  beset  by  a  beggar,  and  his  purse 
chanced  to  be  empty,  he  would  instantly  sit  down 
and  make  a  rapid  drawing,  which,  signed  by  his 
name,  was  readily  marketable.  This  he  would  give 
to  the  beggar  to  sell.  But  his  magnanimity  was 
extended  exclusively  to  the  Gentiles !  Where  a  Jew 
was  concerned,  he  was  relentless.  If  he  saw  one  in 
the  street,  he  would  cross  over  rather  than  pass  near 
him.  If  his  clothes  brushed  against  a  Jew,  he  would 
discard  them  at  once.  His  servant  discovered  this 
weakness,  and  gained  many  a  good  garment  by 
calling  his  master's  attention  to  the  fact  that  a  Jew 
had  rubbed  against  him,  —  had  he  not  noticed  it? 
Once,  when  he  found  a  Jew  pedlar  in  his  house, 
he  not  only  sent  the  housekeeper  away  as  a  quaran- 
tine precaution,   since  she  had  been  talking  with 


122     zhc  Brt  ot  tbe  Dresden  (BaUeri? 

the  offender,  but  he  had  that  part  of  the  floor  where 
the  Jew  had  stood  repaved,  and  he  burnt  the  shoes 
with  which  he  had  himself  kicked  him  out! 

When  Cano  came  to  die,  a  crucifix  was  placed  in 
his  hand.  He  threw  it  impatiently  away,  —  it  was 
not  carved  to  suit  his  aesthetic  taste,  —  and  he  de- 
manded a  plain  wooden  cross,  upon  which  he  could 
imagine  such  a  figure  as  would  be  worthy.  He 
then  died,  according  to  the  chronicle,  "  in  a  manner 
highly  exemplary  and  edifying  to  those  about  him." 
This  was  in  1667.  He  was  a  strangely  inconsistent 
character  —  charitable  to  the  point  of  Quixotism  to 
Christians,  hard-hearted  and  unforgiving  to  Jews; 
hot-tempered  and  quarrelsome  with  his  fellow  art- 
ists, but  friendly  and  sweet  to  his  pupils;  possibly 
a  murderer,  yet  tender  to  those  in  trouble. 

Cano  was  a  methodical  worker.  Blessed  with 
more  than  one  artistic  resource,  he  was  able  to  rest 
himself  from  one  kind  of  work,  by  turning  to 
another,  and  so,  without  weariness,  employed  all 
his  time  to  advantage.  One  day,  when  tired  of 
painting,  he  turned  to  his  mallet  and  chisel  for  re- 
laxation. A  friend  remarking  that  this  was  surely 
a  queer  way  to  rest,  Cano  replied,  "  Blockhead ! 
Don't  you  see  that  to  create  form  and  relief  on  a 
flat  surface  is  a  greater  labour  than  to  fashion  one 
shape  into  another  ?  "    This  may  be  taken  as  Cano's 


Spanisb  /iDasters  123 

answer  to  the  perennial  question  as  to  whether 
sculpture  or  painting  were  the  higher  art. 

On  one  occasion  an  Auditor  of  the  Chancery  of 
Granada  ordered  a  figure  of  St.  Anthony  to  be 
carved  by  Cano.  This  august  personage,  when  he 
was  told  that  Cano  wished  a  hundred  doubloons  for 
the  statue,  remarked,  "  You  have  worked  but 
twenty-five  days;  that  is  at  the  rate  of  four  doub- 
loons a  day."  "  Pardon  me,  your  lordship,"  re- 
plied Cano,  "  I  have  spent  fifty  years  in  learning 
how  to  execute  it  in  tvventy-five  days."  "  That  is 
all  very  well,"  replied  the  Auditor  (Palomino  tells 
us  that  an  auditor  of  Granada  was  "  venerated  like 
a  deity  upon  the  earth"),  "but  I  have  spent  my 
patrimony  and  my  youth  in  studying  at  the  Uni- 
versity, and  in  a  higher  profession,  and  yet  I  am 
only  able  to  make  a  doubloon  a  day."  "  A  higher 
profession!"  cried  Cano.  "The  idea  of  such  a 
comparison !  A  King  can  make  a  Judge  out  of  the 
dust  of  the  earth,  but  God  alone  can  make  an 
Alonso  Cano!"  He  dashed  the  figure  to  the 
ground  as  he  spoke,  and  the  Auditor  rapidly  van- 
ished, and  there  was  never  more  argument  upon  that 
subject. 

The  bust  of  a  black-haired  warrior  with  a  scarf 
of  red  is  by  Pedro  de  Moya,  a  Spaniard  who  lived 
in  the  first  half  of  the  seventeenth  century.  He 
was  born  in  Granada  and  died  there,  though  his 


124     Zbc  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresden  Gallery 

life  was  that  of  a  soldier.  He  managed  to  combine 
the  two  professions  of  foot-soldier  and  painter, 
and  made  great  use  of  his  opportunity  for  studying 
art  in  the  Low  Countries.  When  he  was  not  in 
active  service,  he  was  copying  pictures  in  churches. 
Finally,  however,  his  admiration  for  Van  Dyck 
became  so  all-absorbing,  that  he  obtained  his  dis- 
charge from  the  army,  and  went  to  study  with  Van 
Dyck  in  London.  De  Moya  was  too  late,  however, 
to  profit  much  by  his  instruction,  for  Van  Dyck 
died  only  six  months  after  the  Spaniard's  arrival  in 
England.  Moya  then  retired  to  Spain,  where  his 
foreign  knowledge  had  some  perceptible  influence 
upon  Murillo,  who  was  then  painting  in  Seville. 

Velasquez  and  Murillo  not  only  dominated  Spain 
at  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century,  but  they  also 
dominated  the  whole  world  of  art.  They  were  the 
two  supreme  masters  of  their  time.  Rubens  had 
died  in  1640;  the  Carracci  had  passed  away;  Van 
Dyck  lived  only  until  1641,  and  Guido  Reni  died 
in  1642 ;  Rembrandt  was  the  only  painter  of  first 
importance  alive  later  than  1650,  and  he  died  within 
twenty  years  of  that  time.  So  the  field  was  vacant 
with  the  exception  of  the  "  little  masters  "  of  Hol- 
land and  Salvator  Rosa  in  Naples. 

Sir  David  Wilkie,  in  a  comparison  between  Ve- 
lasquez and  Murillo,  remarks  that  "  while  Velasquez 
has  displayed   the  philosophy  of  art,   Murillo  has 


Spanisb  /IDasters  125 

concealed  it."  In  other  words,  Velasquez  is  a  great 
realist,  who  does  not  attempt  to  conceal  or  to  im- 
pose ;  Murillo,  on  the  contrary,  delights  in  depicting 
the  impossible,  the  fanciful,  the  spiritual,  if  you 
like.  Wilkie  says  he  is  "  without  vulgar  imitation." 
He  pronounces  Velasquez  unrivalled  "  in  painting 
an  intelligent  portrait,"  but  considers  him  inferior 
to  Murillo  where  he  attempts  simple,  natural,  or 
sacred  subjects. 

In  Murillo's  work,  ardour  and  impulsiveness  pre- 
dominate over  quiet  force  and  power ;  in  Velasquez, 
strength  and  reserve  are  more  in  evidence  than 
eager  enthusiasm.  While  I  do  not  hold  with 
Lucien  Solvay  that  Murillo's  work  is  so  "  pleasant " 
that  it  "  verges  on  insipidity,"  it  must  be  admitted 
that  he  has  not  the  virility  in  the  toiU  ensemble  of 
his  art  that  is  in  the  pictures  of  the  greater  Span- 
iard. 

It  is  a  well-known  story  how  Murillo  spent  his 
early  days  in  painting  pictures  for  the  great  market, 
the  Feria,  which  was  held  every  Thursday,  and  is 
still  held,  in  the  long  market-place  in  Seville.  It  is 
interesting  to  imagine  the  young  artist  at  his  stall, 
advertising  his  wares  like  any  common  huckster; 
standing  among  gipsies  and  muleteers,  fish  sellers 
and  junk  dealers,  holding  up  for  sale  a  St.  Chris- 
topher, which  he  can  change  to  order,  by  a  deft 
stroke  of  his  brush,  into  a  St.  Anthony,  if  preferred ; 


126     Ubc  Bit  ot  tbe  Dresden  (Balleri? 

or  a  Madonna,  which  can  be  converted  into  a  Mag- 
dalen or  a  St.  Margaret  with  a  few  skilful  sweeps! 

After  some  years  of  foreign  travel  and  study, 
Murillo  returned  to  Seville,  and  founded  the  cele- 
brated Academy  there.  The  rules  governing  this 
body  in  its  beginnings  are  unique  and  instructive, 
showing  a  high  state  of  idealism  among  the  painters 
of  Spain,  There  were  two  Presidents,  Murillo  and 
Herrera;  they  had  very  definite  duties  to  perform, 
and  it  was  no  sinecure  to  hold  this  office.  They 
were  responsible  for  maintaining  order,  for  impos- 
ing and  collecting  fines,  for  settling  disputes,  and 
for  deciding  upon  the  w^orthiness  of  candidates  who 
wished  to  enter  the  Academy,  A  monthly  subscrip- 
tion from  each  of  the  regular  twenty  members  paid 
for  the  models,  heating,  and  candles ;  students  were 
admitted  for  very  small  sums  —  they  were  encour- 
aged to  come  there  to  study.  One  of  the  rules  for 
admission  was  that  the  student  must  prove  himself 
orthodox  by  a  confession  of  faith :  "  Praised  be 
the  most  Holy  Sacrament  and  the  pure  Conception 
of  Our  Lady."  Conversation  was  not  allowed  un- 
less pertaining  to  the  work  in  hand.  There  was 
a  fine  for  talking  upon  outside  subjects,  and  upon 
profanity  and  vulgarity  in  manners.  This  was  a 
naive  and  rather  refreshing  standard  for  an  art 
school ! 

Murillo  was   fortunate  in  having  attracted  the 


Spanisb  /iDasters  127 

attention  and  respect  of  an  eccentric  but  wealthy 
patron  of  the  arts,  —  the  philanthropist,  Manora. 
This  worthy  was  a  famous  character  in  the  Seville 
of  his  time;  his  conversion  was  of  a  sudden 
nature.  Not  an  especially  religious  man  originally, 
he  was  highly  incensed  upon  a  certain  occasion, 
when  some  hams  which  had  been  sent  him  were 
detained  outside  the  gates  for  duties.  He  went 
forth  in  his  wrath,  intending  to  make  a  great  pro- 
test and  to  upset  things  generally.  While  on  his 
way  to  vent  his  spleen  on  the  officials  in  charge, 
the  narrative  says  that  "  the  Lord  poured  a  great 
light  upon  his  mind."  In  other  words,  he  thought 
better  of  his  intention  to  make  a  fuss.  By  this  mys- 
terious revelation,  whatever  it  may  have  been,  the 
whole  course  of  his  life  was  changed.  As  he  was 
a  moral  and  temperate  man  already,  it  did  not  in- 
volve much  outward  reform  in  his  life,  but  he  was 
resolved  to  devote  himself  ever  after  to  good  works, 
and  to  mortify  the  flesh  so  far  as  he  could.  As 
his  only  approach  to  a  vice  was  a  love  for  chocolate, 
he  immediately  renounced  that  beverage,  and  never 
touched  it  again !  ( When  the  good  man  was  buried, 
an  allusion  to  this  laudable  abstinence  was  men- 
tioned on  his  coffin-lid!)  At  any  rate,  his  virtues 
took  practical  shape,  and  he  gave  generously  to  all 
charitable  institutions,  and,  among  other  good 
works,  he  employed   Murillo   to  paint   eleven  pic- 


128     ube  Hrt  of  tbe  S>res&en  (Ballets 

tures  for  the  adornment  of  a  great  hospital  which 
he  endowed.  Some  of  these  works  are  the  master's 
most  famous  paintings. 

There  is  a  legend  that  Murillo  once  painted  a 
Madonna  on  a  linen  napkin ;  the  circumstances  were 
as  follows.  Murillo  wished  to  leave  some  token  of 
regard  with  the  faculty  cook  at  the  Convent  where 
he  had  resided  for  some  time  as  lay  brother,  to 
whom  it  is  quite  conjecturable  that  the  artist  might 
be  indebted  for  slight  favours  which  a  cook  alone 
could  confer !  Having  used  up  all  his  canvas,  he 
looked  about  to  see  what  he  could  employ  as  a 
ground.  The  cook  extended  a  napkin  to  him,  say- 
ing, "Here,  paint  on  this!"  The  picture,  known 
as  the  Madonna  of  the  Napkin,  adorned  the  altar 
at  the  Capuchin  church. 

Murillo  had  a  high  regard  for  the  genius  of 
other  artists,  being  himself  free  from  petty  jealous- 
ies. Campana's  Descent  from  the  Cross  hung  in 
his  own  parish  church.  He  used  to  sit  and  gaze  at 
it  by  the  hour,  explaining,  "  I  am  waiting  until 
those  men  have  brought  the  body  of  Our  Blessed 
Lord  down  the  ladder."  By  his  own  request,  his 
body  was  laid  beneath  this  picture  after  his  death. 
He  died  in  1682.  He  was  buried  where  he  had 
desired,  but  during  the  wars,  the  French  destroyed 
the  church,  and  no  stone  or  mark  was  left.  Some 
years  later,  excavations  were  made  in  the  rubbish, 


Spanisb  /iDasters  129 

and  a  vault  with  bones  in  it  was  discovered,  but  as 
there  was  no  means  of  identifying  the  remains  of 
Murillo,  it  was  closed  again  just  as  it  was.  His 
bones  are  probably  among  those  found  at  that 
time. 

Murillo  had  married  a  wealthy  and  aristocratic 
woman,  and  his  home  was  always  a  centre  of  social 
and  artistic  gatherings.  His  lovely  daughter  was 
frequently  painted  as  his  type  of  the  Virgin  Mary. 
He  departed  somewhat  from  the  rules  laid  down 
by  Pacheco  regarding  the  treatment  of  his  favourite 
subject,  which  he  has  painted  so  often,  —  the  Im- 
maculate Conception.  Pacheco  was  as  didactic  as 
the  Byzantine  Manual,  which  guided  the  early 
mediaeval  artists  of  Italy.  "  In  this  gracefuUest 
of  mysteries,"  observes  Pacheco,  "  Our  Lady  is  to 
be  painted  in  the  flower  of  her  age,  from  twelve  to 
thirteen  years  old,  with  sweet  grave  eyes,  a  nose 
and  mouth  of  the  most  perfect  form,  rosy  cheeks, 
and  the  finest  streaming  hair  of  golden  hue;  in  a 
word,  with  all  the  beauty  that  a  human  pencil  can 
express."  The  "  human  pencil  "  in  question  cer- 
tainly did  justice  to  the  directions  of  this  lawgiver. 
But  he  has  occasionally  omitted  the  crown  of  stars 
for  which  Pacheco  afterwards  stipulates,  and  also 
another  of  his  recommendations,  the  downward 
pointing  of  the  moon  under  her  feet;  he  has  also 
left  out  the  requisite  dragon,  but  even  Pacheco  con- 


I30     Ube  Hrt  of  tbe  H)re5Den  (Bailer^ 

eludes  that  this  may  be  omitted  if  desired,  since  "  no 
man  ever  painted  it  with  good  will !  " 

Murillo  lived  in  the  Jewish  quarter  of  Seville  dur- 
ing his  later  years.  Ford  alludes  to  the  fact  that  his 
"  painting-room,  nay,  his  living-room  —  for  he 
lived  to  paint  —  was  in  the  upper  floor,  and  as 
cheerful  as  his  works." 

There  is  a  copy  here  of  a  picture  by  Murillo  in 
Munich  of  two  girls  sitting  in  the  street  counting 
money.  This  is  interesting  chiefly  as  showing  the 
other  side  of  this  highly  spiritual  artist,  who  never 
painted  high  life,  popularly  so  called;  he  either 
chose  the  slums  or  the  heavens !  Sir  David  Wilkie 
pronounced  that  "  for  female  and  infantile  beauty 
he  is  the  Correggio  of  Spain." 

Murillo's  Death  of  St.  Clara  is  a  delicious  paint- 
ing. The  colour  is  exquisite:  beautiful  rich  whites, 
a  celestial  blue,  and  a  delicate  red  are  the  predom- 
inating tones.  It  is  one  of  the  loveliest  Murillos  out 
of  Spain.  It  was  only  obtained  for  this  gallery  in 
1894,  being  purchased  from  the  Earl  of  Dudley. 
The  composition,  although  almost  in  the  form  of  a 
procession,  is  not  at  all  stiff.  The  Saint  lies  on  her 
pallet  at  the  left,  where  the  background  is  dark, 
and  the  faces  of  the  attendant  friars  come  only  into 
the  light  in  salient  points.  The  Virgin  Martyrs, 
robed  in  creamy  draperies,  approach  as  in  a  vision, 
each  bearing  a  palm.      Christ  leads  the  crowned 


MURILLO.  —  DEATH    OF    ST.    CLARA    (dETAII.) 


Spanisb  /IDasters  131 

Madonna  in  the  midst.  The  figure  of  the  martyr 
nearest  the  bed,  stooping  to  adjust  the  coverlet,  is 
of  surpassing  grace.  The  heads  and  faces  are  all 
extremely  beautiful.  No  more  satisfactory  example 
of  Murillo  could  be  seen  than  this  majestic  work. 
He  is  at  his  best,  —  graceful,  yet  restrained ;  un- 
affected, yet  brimming  with  celestial  imaginings. 
The  possession  of  this  treasure  makes  up  for  the 
fact  that  the  Madonna  and  Child,  No.  705,  on 
the  adjoining  wall,  is  inferior  to  most  of  Mu- 
rillo's  Virgins.  It  is  not  so  strong  nor  so  char- 
acteristic as  those  in  the  National  Gallery  in  Lon- 
don. 

The  picture  of  St.  Rodriguez,  to  whom  an  angel 
is  bringing  a  wreath,  is  interesting.  It  is  the  study 
of  a  figure  in  full  ecclesiastical  vestments  —  a  de- 
lightful example  of  Church  embroideries!  He 
stands  firmly  and  simply,  his  eyes  cast  up,  while 
a  little  Cupid-like  cherub  descends  from  the  sky. 
There  are  no  accessories  in  the  picture,  except  a 
balustrade  by  way  of  background  filling. 

Of  the  greatest  Spaniard  of  all  we  have  scant 
opportunity  to  judge  in  Dresden :  Diego  de  Silva 
Velasquez  is  only  represented  by  three  small  por- 
traits of  men.  One  of  them,  No.  699,  a  portrait 
of  the  Count  of  Olivares,  may  be  only  a  studio 
replica.  Such  pieces  are  numerous,  —  or  it  may 
have  been  an  early  work  of  the  master,  though  an 


132     Zbc  Hrt  of  tbe  Bresben  Caller^ 

inferior  example  of  his  powers.  In  texture  and 
outline  it  is  not  unlike  the  picture  which  has  caused 
so  much  discussion  of  late,  —  the  recently  acquired 
Portrait  of  Philip  IV.  of  Spain  in  the  Museum  of 
Fine  Arts  in  Boston.  The  black  of  the  costume, 
however,  shows  more  modelling,  and  the  touch  is 
somewhat  looser.  The  portrait  of  a  gentleman 
with  short  hair,  —  evidently  an  aristocrat,  —  No. 
697,  is  a  good  bit  of  the  master's  work.  The  figure 
is  seen  below  the  waist  line,  and  the  painting  is  rich. 
But  the  most  beautiful  is  the  study  of  an  elderly 
man,  No.  698,  in  which  the  later  style  of  Velasquez 
is  displayed.  The  atmosphere  is  smoky  and  tender ; 
the  painting  of  the  thinned  gray  hair  is  almost 
evanescent.  Like  all  of  Velasquez's  men,  these 
three  persons  live  and  breathe  as  few  faces  on  can- 
vas have  ever  done. 

The  Duke  of  Olivares  was  a  minister  of  Philip 
IV.,  but  was  banished  in  1643  for  a  Quixotic  out- 
burst of  charity  toward  a  bar-sinister  relative  who' 
was  not  considered  eligible  for  Court  life.  Olivares 
adopted  this  young  man,  and  had  his  portrait 
painted  by  Velasquez.  Evidently  Velasquez  was  in 
sympathy  with  the  Duke  in  the  stand  which  he 
took,  for  after  his  exile,  the  painter  used  to  visit 
Olivares  in  Loeches. 

Air.  Richard  Ford's  tribute  to  Velasquez  as  a 
portrait-painter  is  apt  at  this  juncture:    "His  por- 


VELASQUEZ.  PORTRAIT    OF    AN    ELDERLY    MAN 


Spanlsb  /iDasters  133 

traits  bafHe  description  and  praise;  they  must  be 
seen.  He  elevated  that  branch  to  the  dignity  of 
history.  He  drew  the  minds  of  men.  His  power 
of  painting  the  circumambient  air,  his  knowledge 
of  lineal  and  aerial  perspective,  the  gradations  of 
tones  in  light,  shadow,  and  colour,  give  an  absolute 
concavity  to  the  flat  surface  of  his  canvas.  We 
look  into  space,  into  a  room,  into  the  reflection  of 
a  mirror." 

The  autocrat  Pacheco  presented  him  with  his 
daughter  in  marriage.  "  After  five  years  of  edu- 
cation and  training,"  he  says,  "  I  married  him 
to  my  daughter,  induced  by  his  youth,  integ- 
rity, and  the  prospects  of  his  great  and  natural 
genius."  He  more  than  fulfilled  the  expectations 
of  his  exacting  father-in-law.  Every  one  knows 
to-day  that  Velasquez  is  perhaps  more  generally 
regarded  as  a  great  master  than  any  other  painter 
who  has  ever  lived  It  took  two  centuries  to  call 
this  to  general  attention. 

Every  study  of  flesh  was  with  him  an  individual 
thing.  He  had  no  trick  for  producing  certain  forms 
of  complexion  or  certain  expressions  of  eye,  —  each 
time  he  painted  a  face  he  created  a  vital  work  of 
art,  free  from  precedent,  habit,  or  established  man- 
ner. Compare  the  three  faces  before  us  —  is  there 
any  small  recurring  detail  by  which  a  critic  could 
say  that  one  was  rendered  by  the  same  hand  as  the 


134     Ube  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresden  Gallery 

others?    Each  has  touches  necessary  to  the  subject; 
each  stands  alone. 

Velasquez's  whole  life  was  practically  determined 
by  a  note  from  Philip  IV.  to  the  officer  at  the  head  of 
the  department  of  artistic  appointments  at  his  court : 
"  I  have  informed  Diego  Velasquez  that  you  receive 
him  into  my  service,  to  occupy  himself  in  his  pro- 
fession as  I  shall  hereafter  command.  .  .  .  Given 
at  Madrid,  on  the  sixth  of  April,  1623."  His  first 
portrait  of  Philip  was  an  equestrian,  and  was  ex- 
hibited in  the  High  Street,  a  festival  being  given  in 
its  honour.  "  There,"  says  a  chronicler,  "  in  the 
open  air  did  Velasquez,  like  the  painters  of  Greece, 
listen  to  the  praises  of  a  delighted  public."  His 
happy  and  proud  father-in-law  disported  himself 
on  this  occasion  in  flowery  verse;  if  the  Inquisition 
were  at  all  particular  concerning  the  virtue  of  truth- 
ful utterance,  they  ought  to  have  called  Pacheco 
down  for  his  highly  imaginative  allusions  to  the 
Sovereign!  The  octave  of  the  sonnet  which  he 
wrote  runs  as  follows : 

"  Speed  thee,  brave  youth,  in  thy  adventurous  race 
Right  well  begun.     Yet  dawning  hope  alone 
No  guerdon  wins.     Then  up,  and  make  thine  own 
Our  painting's  richest  wealth  and  loftiest  place. 
The  form  august  inspire  thee,  and  fair  face 
Of  our  great  King,  the  greatest  Earth  hath  known; 
In  whose  bright  aspect  to  his  people  shown 
We  fear  but  change,  so  perfect  is  its  grace  !  " 


Spantsb  /iDasters  135 

Philip's  form  was  among  the  least  august,  and 
his  face  among  the  least  fair  (except  in  being  pasty- 
pale)  in  the  kingdom;  such  tribute  must  have 
caused  a  smile  before  the  mirror  of  Majesty, 
if  Philip  had  the  slightest  sense  of  humour ! 

Velasquez  grew  in  favour  with  the  king  forth- 
with, and  was  his  friend  and  companion  for  many 
years  to  come.  He  made  two  Italian  tours,  the 
second  one,  in  1648,  being  of  special  interest,  as  he 
was  commissioned  to  buy  pictures  for  the  Spanish 
court.  No  wonder  that  the  Madrid  gallery  is  so 
marvellous,  when  one  remembers  that  the  selections 
were  made  by  the  greatest  artist  of  his  day! 

When  he  arrived  in  Rome  he  was  requested  to 
paint  a  portrait  of  Pope  Innocent  X.,  which  he 
accordingly  did.  (This  was  the  Pope  whose  body 
was  so  poorly  watched  after  his  death,  that,  during 
the  night,  the  rats  ate  part  of  his  pontifical  nose! 
The  narrator  of  this  anecdote  says  that  the  poor 
rats  had  a  curse  denounced  against  them  for  this 
offence,  with  bell,  book,  and  candle,  like  any  public 
malefactors!) 

In  1658  Velasquez  was  made  a  Knight  of  San- 
tiago. The  order,  after  it  had  been  conferred,  was 
brought  in  question  on  certain  technical  grounds, 
and  had  to  be  submitted  to  the  Pope.  Philip  was 
much  annoyed  at  the  delay,  and  remarked  to  the 
envoy :   "  Place  it  on  record  that  the  evidence  satis- 


136     Ube  Brt  ot  tbe  Dresden  (Balleri? 

fies  mc!  "  All  was  settled  agreeably,  and  the  painter 
received  his  decoration  in  November  of  that  year, 

Velasquez  died  at  the  age  of  sixty-one,  in  1660. 
The  body  lay  in  state  in  the  dress  of  the  Knight  of 
Santiago,  and  the  interment  v^as  dignified  and  be- 
fitting his  rank  and  importance.  He  w^as  buried  in 
the  church  of  San  Juan.  This  building  was  after- 
ward destroyed  by  the  French.  A  sketch  of  Velas- 
quez after  death,  made  by  Alfaro,  is  reproduced  in 
Stirling  Maxwell's  "  Annals  of  the  Artists  of 
Spain." 

There  is  a  magnificent  example  here  of  the  work 
of  Juan  de  Valdes  Leal,  a  painter  of  the  latter  half 
of  the  seventeenth  century.  It  is  a  tall  figure  of 
St.  Basco  of  Portugal  before  his  monastery;  majes- 
tic in  pose,  the  figure  is  painted  in  low  tones,  black 
and  white  predominating. 

Valdes  Leal  was  of  an  unhappy  disposition,  jeal- 
ous and  suspicious,  and  caused  himself  much  unnec- 
essary trouble  by  insisting  upon  competing  with 
Murillo,  whereas,  if  he  had  only  had  the  philosophy 
to  take  himself  at  his  true  valuation,  he  might  have 
been  very  proud  of  his  achievement.  His  wife  was 
also  an  artist. 

It  is  matter  for  regret  that  there  are  no  examples 
of  the  work  of  Goya  or  the  later  Spaniards  in 
Dresden. 

Two  other  Spanish  pictures  are  to  be  noted  in 


VALDES    LEAL.  —  ST.    BASCO    OF    PORTUGAL 


Spanisb  /Masters  137 

other  parts  of  the  gallery  —  one  by  Periera,  and  one 
by  some  member  of  the  school  of  Juan  de  Jiianes. 
They  will  be  mentioned  when  we  treat  of  that  part 
of  the  collection  where  they  are  hung. 


CHAPTER   V. 

PAINTERS   OF   THE   FRENCH   AND   ENGLISH    SCHOOLS 

French  art  is  not  very  satisfactorily  represented 
in  the  Dresden  collection.  Of  the  early  masters 
there  is  scant  opportunity  of  judging;  there  is  only 
one  little  portrait  of  Jeanne  de  Pisseleu,  hanging  in 
the  twenty-first  cabinet,  by  some  member  of  the 
school  of  Frangois  Clouet,  the  Court  Painter  in 
France  from  1541  to  1572.  This  is  all  we  have 
prior  to  the  seventeenth-century  masters,  and  of 
them,  not  very  important  examples. 

As  the  French  pictures  are  dotted  about  here  and 
there,  it  will  be  well  to  specify,  especially  in  the  case 
of  the  earlier  ones,  where  they  are  to  be  found. 
The  sixth  cabinet  contains  most  of  the  seventeenth- 
century  works  of  interest,  —  here  Claude  Lorrain 
may  be  seen ;  while  across  the  hall  marked  E  on  the 
plan,  the  cabinets  on  the  other  side  also  contain 
some  French  pictures  of  this  period.  In  one  of 
these.  Cabinet  44,  is  a  pretty,  florid  picture  by 
Simon  Vouet,  a  painter  born  in  Paris,  though  a 
follower  of  the  Eclectics  of  Italy.     Of  those  here 

138 


Ubc  jfrencb  ant>  Bnalisb  Scbools    139 

represented,  he  comes  chronologically  next  to 
Clotiet,  as  his  dates  are  from  1590  to  1649.  The 
subject  of  the  picture  is  the  Apotheosis  of  St.  Louis, 
that  delightful  Royal  saint  of  France,  one  of  the 
most  picturesque  figures  in  mediaeval  history,  as 
interpreted  by  his  faithful  "  Boswell,"  the  Sire  de 
Joinville.  Vouet  can  hardly  be  called  typical  of 
French  art-impulses;  but  French  art  at  that  time 
was  something  of  a  continental  compilation,  and 
had  little  actual  individual  expression. 

A  contemporary  of  Vouet  was  Le  Valentin,  who 
painted  the  very  interesting  Old  Violinist  in  the 
fortieth  cabinet.  This  is  said  to  be  possibly  in- 
tended for  Homer.  At  any  rate,  it  is  rich  and  glow- 
ing, and  the  handling  is  charming.  Le  Valentin  led 
a  Bohemian  life,  in  which  he  came  under  the  influ- 
ence of  Caravaggio  in  Italy. 

Nicolas  Poussin  and  his  adopted  pupil-brother-in- 
law,  Caspar  Dughet,  are  to  be  seen  in  the  sixth 
cabinet.  Nicolas  Poussin  was  born  in  1594,  and 
is  among  the  earliest  Frenchmen  of  note.  The  story 
of  his  life  is  well  known:  how  he  went  to  Rome, 
married  a  girl  who  nursed  him  through  an  illness, 
and  how  Poussin  afterward  adopted  her  younger 
brother,  who  was  also  an  artist.  Poussin,  Claude 
Lorrain,  and  Salvator  Rosa  lived  near  each  other 
on  the  Pincian  Hill  in  Rome  —  a  significant  group. 
Poussin's  style  was  formed  chiefly  on  a  study  of 


I40     Zbc  Hrt  ot  tbe  2)rest>en  Gallery 

the  antique;  the  cold  Renaissance  of  Classic  per- 
fections (which  ceased  to  be  perfect  when  they 
were  intentionally  introduced  into  an  alien  environ- 
ment) was  the  chief  message  which  he  brought  to 
France.  His  works  at  their  best  are  in  the  National 
Gallery  in  London.  In  Dresden  there  are  only  a 
few  really  worthy  examples.  The  colour  and 
handling  in  the  Venus  Reposing  are  excellent,  — 
"  Repose  "  is  hardly  an  adequate  term  for  the  aban- 
doned intoxication  suggested  by  the  study  of  the 
nude.  The  overturned  wine- jar  and  empty  tazza 
indicate  an  orgie,  and  the  figure  of  Venus  is  that 
of  a  person  in  a  drunken  lethargy.  Yet  the  figure 
is  beautiful  in  spite  of  these  Bacchic  features.  The 
face  is  of  the  aimless  stupid  type  which  connotes  the 
satisfied  animal  nature.  The  first  example  of  Pous- 
sin's  Adoration  of  the  Magi  is  here,  —  the  compo- 
sition was  repeated  later  in  a  similar  picture  in  the 
Louvre.  The  pale  blue  robe  in  this  painting  is  too 
crude.  A  very  good  example  of  Poussin's  classical 
achievement  is  seen  in  the  Nymph  Syrinx  pursued 
by  Pan.  The  Narcissus  gazing  at  his  own  reflection 
in  the  brook  is  an  early  picture,  if  executed  by 
Poussin  at  all.  There  is  a  curious  imaginative  bit 
called  the  Kingdom  of  Flora,  in  which  nymphs  are 
seen  changed  to  flowers,  according  to  one  of  Ovid's 
Metamorphoses. 

There  is  a  striking  portrait  of  Poussin  himself, 


NICOLAS    POUSSIN.  PAN    AND    SYRINX 


Ube  J'rencb  an5  Bnglisb  Scbool6    ui 

executed  by  a  pupil,  and  with  the  inscription  "  Si 
Nomen  a  me  quceris  N.  Poussin  1640,  F."  There 
is  an  old  engraving  from  this  picture  which  bears 
the  signature  "  V.  E.  Pinxit."  It  is  rich  in  tone, 
and  an  interesting  likeness  of  this  brilliant  French- 
man. 

There  are  also  four  landscapes  by  Gaspard 
Dughet,  uninteresting  and  uninspired,  as  are  most 
of  his  heavy  studies  of  nature. 

The  Holy  Family,  by  Charles  Le  Brun,  is  good; 
it  is  academic,  but  a  pleasing  composition.  This  is 
almost  a  replica  of  a  picture  of  the  same  subject 
by  the  same  painter  in  the  Louvre. 

Claude  Gellee,  or  Claude  Lorrain,  was  born  in 
Champagne,  in  the  Duchy  of  Lorraine,  in  1600.  He 
had  little  schooling,  and  in  fact,  spelt  his  own  name 
in  various  ways,  so  that  when  he  came  to  make  his 
will,  before  his  death,  he  had  to  specify  that  the 
correct  spelling  of  it  was  Claude  Gellee!  He  was 
the  leading  landscape  painter  of  his  day.  His 
father,  a  pastry  cook,  had  complained  bitterly  while 
the  boy  was  small,  that  he  could  neither  teach  him 
to  manage  an  oven  nor  to  make  a  pie!  He  was 
advised  to  put  him  in  the  Church,  his  brother  quot- 
ing the  old  proverb,  "If  your  child  is  not  good  for 
anything  else,  he  will  be  good  for  the  Church !  " 
But,  as  Claude  could  not  be  taught  to  read,  this 
was  also  impossible.     He  finally  obtained  a  position 


142      Ube  Hrt  of  tbe  H)re6t)en  (Bailer^ 

as  colour-grinder  to  an  artist.  When  Claude  was 
thirty-six  years  old,  he  was  still  grinding  colours; 
when  he  was  forty-five,  he  had  become  the  cele- 
brated Claude  Lorrain,  rising  by  the  sheer  power 
of  his  own  talent  out  of  absolute  obscurity  into  fame 
and  prominence.  It  was  a  remarkable  development 
in  less  than  ten  years. 

While  on  his  travels,  there  is  a  tradition  that  he 
stayed  awhile  in  a  town  named  Harlaching,  near 
Munich.  On  the  strength  of  this  rumour,  King 
Ludwig  I.  of  Bavaria  erected  a  monument  there  to 
his  memory. 

His  art  seems  to  us  to-day  to  be  academic ;  it  is 
conventional;  but  when  he  painted,  he  was  among 
the  first  to  study  landscape  at  all  for  its  own  sake. 
The  primitive  idea  still  obtained  that  a  picture  must 
include  a  great  many  subjects.  The  later  ideal  of 
taking  a  part  of  a  scene,  and  interpreting  it  accord- 
ing to  some  special  mood,  had  not  then  occurred 
to  any  one.  A  landscape  must  contain  nearly  every 
known  feature  of  a  romantic  country,  or  it  was  no 
picture  worthy  of  the  name!  Claude  studied  con- 
scientiously in  the  open  air,  trying  on  his  palette 
to  "  match  tints  "  with  nature,  and  then  taking  the 
canvas  home  to  finish  in  his  studio.  Such  a  pro- 
ceeding resulted  in  pictures  which  to  modern  eyes 
seem  to  lack  spontaneity,  but  one  must  go  back  in 
imagination  and   realize  how   little  even  this  had 


Ubc  ffrencb  an&  Bnglisb  Scbools    143 

been  done  up  to  his  time.  Italy  had  a  message  to 
him  which  even  artists  who  had  been  brought  up 
in  that  country  had  failed  to  perceive.  The  Clas- 
sical element  appealed  to  him,  —  the  country  such  as 
Virgil  had  pictured  in  his  Georgics,  and  the  ruins 
of  the  crumbled  magnificence  of  Rome,  When  any 
painter  looks  at  a  scene,  it  is  necessary  for  him  to 
decide  whether  he  is  going  to  treat  it  as  a  scene  with 
figures,  or  as  a  picture  of  figures  with  the  scene  as 
a  background.  Claude  chose  the  first  method.  He 
had  a  definite  ideal  of  a  picture  of  nature;  it  must 
be  a  wide  distant  view ;  there  must  be  all  the  com- 
ponent parts  of  a  romantic  landscape  in  each  sepa- 
rate study;  rocks  or  something  high  to  meet  the 
frame  acceptably  on  either  side,  and,  in  the  fore- 
ground, some  little  distorted  human  beings,  to  give 
sense  of  scale,  and  to  introduce  the  human  element; 
and  such  dreadful  little  people,  usually!  Had  he 
been  content  with  indicating  these  figures  which 
he  insisted  upon  using,  it  would  have  been  better; 
but  no ;  he  must  go  to  the  Academy  and  draw  from 
models,  so  that  he  might  strive  to  do  something 
entirely  out  of  his  line,  in  drawing  strictly  correct 
human  anatomy,  clothed  in  Contadina  costume  or 
classic  rusticity.  He  knew  his  own  shortcomings 
in  this  department,  and  used  to  admit  that  his  land- 
scapes were  sold,  but  that  his  figures  were  given 
gratis ! 


144     Ubc  Hrt  ot  tbe  Dresden  (Balleri? 

Claude  was  something  of  a  hermit.  He  never 
visited  his  friends,  nor  did  he  encourage  a  neigh- 
bourly spirit  in  them.  He  gave  himself  entirely  to 
his  art,  and  pegged  away  with  unfailing  industry. 
This  constant  application,  unenlivened  by  human 
intercourse,  probably  accounts  for  the  lack  of  sym- 
pathetic rendering  of  his  fellow  creatures,  and  his 
artificiality.  His  very  poetic  and  lovely  Acis  and 
Galatea,  in  this  collection,  is  a  happy  exception  to 
this  rule.  It  was  painted  at  the  time  of  the  plague 
in  Rome,  when  most  of  the  citizens  fled,  and  while 
Claude  and  Poussin  went  serenely  on  with  their 
business  regardless  of  the  storm  and  stress  without. 
Certainly  there  is  no  suggestion  of  a  physical  terror 
in  this  placid  sea,  on  which  the  soft  glow  of  the 
sunlight  falls  so  tranquilly  with  its  high  rocky  prom- 
ontory at  the  right,  and  the  lovers  in  their  little 
improvised  tent  in  the  foreground.  A  playful  little 
Cupid  is  amusing  himself  with  a  couple  of  doves. 
Acis  and  Galatea  have  taken  a  mean  advantage  of 
poor  Polyphemus,  the  Cyclops  lover  of  the  nymph, 
who  sits  on  the  opposite  bank,  piping  contentedly, 
little  suspecting  what  is  going  on  beyond  the  little 
shelter  which  so  discreetly  turns  its  back  upon  him ! 

The  other  Claude,  the  Flight  into  Egypt,  was 
among  the  personal  effects  of  the  master,  and  was 
mentioned  in  his  will,  as  *'  painted  on  the  spot  by  my 
hand!"     This  spot  certainly  was  not  Egypt!     The 


XTbe  jfrencb  auD  Bnolisb  Scbools    145 

picture  might  possibly  come  under  the  condemnation 
of  Ruskin,  who  speaks  of  the  "  mourning  and 
murky  olive-browns  and  verdigris  greens  in  which 
Claude,  with  the  industry  and  intelligence  of  a 
Sevres  china  painter,  drags  the  laborious  bramble 
leaves  over  his  childish  foregrounds !  "  This  is  elo- 
quent criticism,  and  there  is  some  truth  in  it.  This 
picture  used  to  be  catalogued  as  "  A  Shepherdess 
Listening  to  a  Shepherd  playing  on  a  Pipe,"  but 
it  may  be  observed  that  in  the  left  background  is 
the  episode  which  has  changed  the  name  of  the 
picture:  the  Flight  into  Egypt,  Joseph  leading  the 
ass  upon  which  sits  the  Virgin  holding  her  child. 
The  more  one  looks  at  this  picture  the  more  epi- 
sodes one  detects.  A  goat  appears  to  be  committing 
suicide  incontinently  at  the  right,  by  jumping  into 
a  ravine. 

Among  these  pictures  hangs  one  by  the  Flemish 
artist,  Gerard  Lairesse,  who  was  the  original  of  the 
Classicists.  His  doctrine  of  the  good  and  the  beau- 
tiful is  thus  summed  up  in  his  own  words:  "  What 
is  beautiful?  A  landscape  with  upright  trees,  fair 
vistas,  azure  blue  skies,  ornamental  fountains, 
stately  palaces,  in  a  learned  architectural  style,  with 
well-built  men  and  women,  and  well-fed  cows  and 
sheep.  What  is  ugly?  Ill-formed  trees  with  aged, 
crooked,  and  cloven  stems,  uneven  and  pathless 
ground,   sharp-cut  hills   and   mountains  which   are 


146     XTbe  Brt  ot  tbe  H)rest)en  Gallery? 

too  high,  rude  or  dilapidated  buildings,  with  their 
ruins  lying  strewn  in  piles,  a  sky  with  heavy  clouds, 
swampy  water,  lean  cattle  in  the  field,  and  ungrace- 
ful wayfarers."  This  definition  proves  that  art  is 
after  all  largely  dependent  upon  fashion.  Nowa- 
days it  would  be  almost  possible  to  oppose  these 
definitions  exactly  to  each  other;  what  Lairesse 
considered  indispensable  to  beauty  reads  to  us  like 
a  very  conventional  catalogue,  in  fact,  almost  a 
burlesque,  so  nearly  have  we  come  to  believe  that 
the  higher  beauty  consists  largely  in  most  of  the 
elements  which  he  considers  ugly ! 

Lairesse  has  given  us  a  beautiful  cold  unimpas- 
sioned  idyl  in  his  Parnassus.  Sweet  svelt  Muses 
ringing  about  in  a  decorous  dance,  well-dressed 
mortals  in  conventional  stage  attitudes  of  embrace, 
pretty  fluffy  trees,  and  a  majestic  Minerva  giving 
advice  to  an  obstreperous  flock  of  Cupids,  —  all 
very  charming  and  piquant,  and  harmlessly  mirth- 
ful; that  is  Lairesse's  idea  of  the  Classic  mount. 
Gerard  Lairesse  was  born  in  Liege,  in  1641,  but 
afterward  went  to  Amsterdam,  where  he  died  in 
171 1,  after  having  lost  his  eyesight  at  about  his 
fiftieth  year. 

Frangois  Millet,  usually  called  Francisque,  was 
born  in  Antwerp,  in  1642,  but  painted  chiefly  in 
Paris.  Among  the  landscapes  in  the  sixth  cabinet 
is  one  now  given  to  him,  although  it  used  to  be 


.  Kauffmann). 

ROOM  ' 

39.  Italiai 

f-  ;;^l!^loom). 

42.  Italia:    ^.^ 

43.  Italia°°^> 
43a.  Close' 


52.  Paste 

53.  Frenc 

54.  Frenc 

55.  Germ 

56.  GermiVIII.  Century. 


RORTHWEST  SIDB 


XVII.  and  XVIII.  Centuries. 
XVI.  and  XVII.  Centuries. 
XVI.  and  XVII.  Cenluries. 
XIV.  to  XVI.  Ceotuiy. 


SOUTHEAST  SIDE 
Pastels  and  Miniatures. 
French.    XVIII.  Century  (Riga ud). 
XVIII.  Century  (Watleau). 


1.  XVIII.  Century. 
1.  XVIII.  Century  (ist  Canaletto  Room). 
1.  XVIII.  Century  (2d  Canaletto  Room). 
1.    XVIII.  Century  (3d  Canaletto  Room> 

I  Rotur  ■■  ■ 


XVIII.  Century  (G.  M.  Crespi). 
German.  XVIII.  Century  (Dietrich). 
German.  XVIII.  Century  (Dietrich). 
German.  XVIII.  Century  (Dietrich). 
French.  XVIII.  Century  (Pesne> 
French.  XVIII.  Century  (Silvestre). 
T-  U.  V.     Half  lighted  Rooms. 

Decorative  llalian  pictures  of  the  XVIII.  Century. 


Ube  jfrencb  anb  Bnglisb  Scbools    147 

included  among  the  works  of  Gaspard  Dughet.  He 
was  a  follower  of  the  latter.  This  is  one  of  his 
principal  works. 

In  the  forty-fifth  cabinet  there  is  a  battle-piece 
by  Jacques  Courtois,  generally  known  as  il  Borgo- 
gnone,  a  follower  of  Salvator  Rosa,  in  Italy,  al- 
though born  in  France  in  1621.  This  picture  is 
confused  in  action,  and  the  colour  is  uninteresting. 
Courtois  left  France  when  he  was  only  fifteen,  so 
that  he  hardly  comes  under  the  head  of  French 
painters. 

Most  of  the  other  French  pictures  are  to  be  seen 
on  the  ground  floor.  It  will  be  well  to  descend  at 
this  point,  as  all  the  works  of  art  below  may  be 
examined  at  the  same  time. 

In  cabinet  fifty-three,  the  full-length  portrait  of 
King  August  III.  of  Saxony,  one  of  the  Royal 
founders  of  the  Dresden  gallery,  is  to  be  seen, 
painted  by  Hyacinthe  Rigaud.  The  figure  is 
majestic,  and  yet  has  a  charming  breezy  quality  as 
well,  which  prevents  it  from  being  formal.  The 
face  is  young  and  full,  sweet  in  expression,  and  not 
spoiled  by  the  ridiculous  hair-dressing  of  the  period. 
In  this  picture  he  appears  in  his  robes  as  Electoral 
Prince  in  Paris.  A  little  negro  attendant  is  behind 
him,  serving  as  a  foil  to  his  fair  and  kingly  comeli- 
ness. The  glittering  armour  and  rich  ermine-lined 
mantle  help  to  make  this  a  striking  royal  portrait. 


148     Ube  Hrt  ot  tbe  Dresden  Caller^ 

Rigaud  was  quite  a  character  among  the  painters 
of  his  day.  He  disHked  to  portray  any  but  young 
and  good-looking  subjects.  When  elderly  princesses 
applied  for  their  likenesses,  he  hated  to  undertake 
the  work.  "  If  I  paint  them  as  they  are,"  he  would 
say,  "  they  will  think  I  have  not  done  them  justice; 
if  I  flatter  them,  the  portraits  will  not  be  recog- 
nizable!" One  lady  found  fault  with  him  because 
he  had  not  coloured  her  cheek  as  rosily  as  she  her- 
self was  wont  to  do.  "  Where  do  you  buy  your 
colours,  M.  Rigaud?"  this  lady  asked.  "They 
seem  rather  dull."  Whereupon  Rigaud  looked  fix- 
edly at  her,  and  replied,  calmly,  "  I  believe  we  both 
get  them  at  the  same  shop,  Madame." 

Louis  de  Silvestre  the  Younger  was  a  pupil  of 
Charles  Le  Brun.  He  was  a  Frenchman,  but  was 
Court  Painter  to  August  the  Strong  in  Dresden. 
Here  may  be  seen,  in  the  sixty-ninth  cabinet,  the 
celebrated  portrait  mentioned  by  Carlyle,  in  which 
August  and  his  cousin,  Frederick  the  Great,  appear  *. 
"  Large  as  life,  in  their  respective  costumes  and 
features  (short  Potsdam  Grenadier-Colonel  and 
tall  Saxon  Darius  or  Sardanapalus),  in  the  act  of 
shaking  hands;  symbolically  burying  past  grudges 
and  swearing  eternal  friendship,  so  to  speak."  Car- 
lyle voices  the  general  sentiment  and  taste  as  he 
goes  on  to  say :  "  To  this  editor  the  picture  did  not 
seem  good   for  much."     In  the  entrance-hall  are 


Ube  jfrencb  an^  lEnolisb  Scbools    149 

two  other  portraits  by  Silvestre,  one  of  August  the 
Strong  on  horseback  and  one  of  August  III.  as 
Electoral  Prince,  also  an  equestrian.  It  is  said  that 
one  of  the  recreations  of  the  second  King  of  Prus- 
sia used  to  be  to  paint  likenesses  of  his  grenadiers; 
when  he  got  the  paint  too  red  he  simplified  matters 
by  rouging  the  subject  until  he  looked  like  the 
picture ! 

Alexis  Grimou,  who  was  a  native  of  Switzerland, 
although  here  included  among  the  artists  of  the 
French  School,  painted  the  figure  of  a  Flute  Player, 
No.  772,  in  the  fifty-fourth  cabinet. 

Antoine  Pesne,  though  born  in  Paris,  in  1683, 
was  made  Court  painter  in  Berlin,  where  he  after- 
ward died,  in  1757.  His  own  portrait  may  be  seen. 
No.  775.  Pesne  studied  for  a  time,  too,  in  Venice. 
He  attracted  the  attention  of  the  father  of  Frederick 
the  Great,  Frederick  William  I.,  and  was  engaged 
by  him  to  transfer  his  activities  to  the  Prussian 
Court.  He  was  sometimes  called  in  to  discuss  mat- 
ters when  Frederick  the  Great  and  Voltaire  were 
squabbling.  It  is  to  be  regretted  that  we  have  not 
one  of  Pesne's  portraits  of  Frederick  William  — 
they  are  described  as  very  interesting.  "  Most 
solid,"  says  Carlyle,  "  plumb  and  rather  more ;  eyes 
steadfastly  awake,  cheeks  slightly  compressed,  too, 
which  fling  the  mouth  rather  forward,  as  if  asking, 
silently,  '  anything  astir,  there?    All  right  here?  '  " 


15°     Ube  Hrt  of  tbe  5)res5en  (Bailer^ 

His  picture  of  Little  Fritz,  too,  as  a  drummer-boy, 
is  a  sympathetic  and  charming  rendering  of  the 
boyhood  promise  of  the  Great  Frederick;  it  is  in 
the  Palace  at  Charlottenburg.  Carlyle  alludes  to 
him  as  "  painter  Pesne,  a  French  immigrant,  or  Im- 
portee,  ...  a  man  of  great  skill  with  the  brush, 
whom  history  yet  thanks  on  several  occasions." 
Unfortunately,  in  the  Dresden  gallery  we  have  no 
really  characteristic  pictures  by  him,  but  only  in- 
different studies  of  unimportant  likenesses  and  sub- 
jects. It  is  possible  that  the  half-length  figure  of 
a  girl  in  a  straw  hat,  with  pigeons,  may  be  the 
picture  spoken  of  by  Carlyle,  when  he  relates  the 
rural  tastes  and  interests  of  the  Queen,  telling  how 
she  used  to  invite  parties  of  Salzburg  Emigrants  to 
come  and  visit  her  at  Monbijou,  treating  them  to 
supper  and  Bibles !  In  this  connection  Carlyle 
says :  "  On  one  occasion  she  picked  out  a  handsome 
young  lass  among  them,  and  had  Painter  Pesne  over 
to  take  her  portrait.  Handsome  lass,  by  Pesne, 
shone  thenceforth  on  the  walls  of  Monbijou,  and 
fashion  thereupon  took  up  the  Tyrolese  hat,  which 
has  been  much  worn  since." 

The  great  epicure  in  passing  fashion  and  the 
whimsical  extravagances  of  the  eighteenth  century 
was  Watteau.  He  began  by  painting  what  might 
be  called  "  repeats  "  of  saints  —  stock  pictures  or- 
dered at  so  much  a  head,  for  seven  years,  at  Paris. 


Ube  jfrenrb  an&  Bngltsb  Scbools     15 ' 

But  as  soon  as  prosperity  allowed  him  to  select  his 
own  subjects,  he  dropped  his  uncongenial  saints,  and 
turned  his  attention  and  talents  in  the  direction  of 
high  life,  portraying  the  gallantries  and  fastidious 
etiquette  of  the  aristocratic  life  of  France,  being 
known  as  the  originator  of  a  new  school,  that  of  the 
"  Fetes  Galantes."  With  him  are  generally  asso- 
ciated Pater  and  Lancret,  who  appear  grouped 
together  in  Dresden,  so  that  we  may  as  well  exam- 
ine all  three  at  once.  In  the  fifty-fourth  cabinet  th"' 
works  of  Watteau,  Lancret,  and  Pater  are  hung,'^ 
making  a  dainty  boudoir  of  graceful  affectations. 

Of  these  pictures  Watteau's  Love  Feast  is  rather 
the  most  attractive.  In  a  beautiful  garden  such  as 
the  one  described  by  Lope  de  Vega,  "  wherein  all 
Ovid  stood  translated  into  bronze  and  marble," 
delicately  gowned  ladies  and  courtly  cavaliers  are 
toying  with  the  tender  passion  in  a  coy  and  artless 
group,  which  is  divided  into  couples,  although  there 
seems  to  be  no  objection  on  the  part  of  these  lovers 
to  the  presence  of  a  crowd!  A  statue  of  Venus 
presides  over  this  curious  galaxy.  The  separate 
studies  of  the  girls  are  charming ; '  a  sweet  coquet- 
tish little  person  sits  erect  in  her  unyielding  bodice 
at  the  foot  of  the  statue,  while  her  swain,  less 
stiffly  posed,  sits  by  her.  A  beautiful  study  of 
graceful  draperies  is  seen  in  the  central  group,  in 
which  the  lady's  back  is  turned;    her  pretty  head 


152     Ube  Brt  of  tbc  Bresben  Gallery? 

is  canted  at  a  charming  angle.  One  couple  is  seen 
preparing  to  leave  the  general  concourse,  and  these 
are  looking  back  over  their  shoulders,  at  a  playful 
pair  on  the  vine-covered  grass.  A  river  scene  on 
the  left  adds  to  the  charm  of  the  picture,  combining, 
as  is  usual  with  Watteau,  the  extremes  of  sylvan 
simplicity  with  the  height  of  luxury  and  fashion. 
Two  of  the  costumes  in  this  picture  exhibit  to  spe- 
cial advantage  the  original  Watteau  plait. 
,  The  other  painting  by  Watteau  is  called  A  Gar- 
den Party.  The  chief  point  of  interest  is  an  in- 
imitable bit  of  character  study  in  the  figure  of  a 
well-appointed  dandy  who  stands  apart,  his  head 
thrown  back  in  a  connoisseur-like  manner,  and  both 
hands  planted  on  his  hips,  lost  in  admiration  of  a 
nude  marble  figure  of  a  nymph  on  a  fountain.  This 
man's  pose  would  appear  to  have  proved  an  inspi- 
ration to  Fortuny  at  a  later  date. 

There  are  two  subjects  here  known  by  the  same 
name,  —  A  Quadrille  under  the  Trees.  No.  785  is 
by  Lancret,  but  was  once  ascribed  to  Pater;  No. 
788  is  by  Pater,  and  was  originally  considered  a 
Lancret.  It  is  more  or  less  a  case  of  Tweedledum 
and  Tweedledee.  The  Paters  and  Lancrets  have 
most  of  them  suffered  from  what  we  might  denom- 
inate cross-ascription,  and  it  is  difficult  for  any  but 
very  expert  critics  to  determine  why  they  were  ever 
changed !    They  are  all  pretty  —  airy  —  alluring  — 


RP^^^^^I 

^^^H|?^f               Tl^ 

^^^^^^HHw^^^i|j^% ' 

' i^^^^^HR^'"    '^^^^^^^^^^^BP^^^^^'^tT'''            ji 

/^^B^H 

^^^^^^^^^^^H^^^^^^^^^^^^^^B  ■[                       '^jtmH^M 

'j^^^^^l 

^^^■^^^ 

XTbe  ifrencb  an&  Bnglisb  Scbools    153 

restful,  in  their  well-bred,  dressy  fashion.  They 
suggest  a  life  of  careless,  selfish,  unquestioning 
merriment,  leading  the  people  slowly  but  surely  to 
the  maddened  mob  and  the  Guillotine.  De  Gon- 
court  speaks  of  Watteau  "  dont  I'ceuvre  ressemble 
aux  Champs  Elysees  de  la  Passion!"  and  "Wat- 
teau le  Pensieroso  de  la  Regence,"  while  the  digni- 
fied Horace  Walpole  remarks  that  "  his  shepherd- 
esses, nay,  his  very  sheep,  are  coquettes!"  His 
trees  are  "  Tufts  of  plumes  and  fans  and  trimmed 
up  groves,"  and,  according  to  Wilkie  (who  wrote 
particularly  of  those  examples  in  Dresden),  "in 
quality  too  light  and  feeble,  but  elegant  and  gay  in 
the  extreme."  Soft  smoky  blues,* tender  puce  pinks, 
limpid  apple  greens,  and  rich  opalescent  whites,  — 
these  are  the  tints  which  the  artists  of  the  Fetes 
Galantes  knew  so  well  how  to  employ.  And  while 
we  classify  the  school  in  this  rather  arbitrary  way, 
as  the  painters  of  the  Fetes  Galantes,  we  must  not 
forget  that  if  their  subjects  were  ephemeral,  their 
art  was  brilliant.  This  ineffable  blending  of  soft, 
liquid  tones,  this  composing  of  harmonious  lines 
and  subtle  effulgence  of  atmosphere,  —  these  qual- 
ities are  seen  nowhere  developed  in  the  same  degree, 
so  full  of  poetic  fluency,  as  in  the  works  of  Wat- 
teau, Lancret,  and  Pater.  And  another  quality 
characterizes  them :  a  quality  all  too  rare  in  art. 
They  are,  even  when  dealing  with  caresses  and 


154     Ube  Hrt  of  tbe  2)rest)en  Oallers 

amorous  frolics,  absolutely  pure  and  refined.  There 
is  an  elevation  of  decency,  to  say  the  least,  which 
is  absent  in  the  clever  pictures  of  the  Dutch  School, 
and  the  mythological  incidents  as  treated  by  Italians. 
Innocent  —  mirthful  —  theatrical,  but  never  vicious 
or  sensual,  Watteau  and  his  followers  are  seers  of 
a  very  exquisite  vision. 

Lancret's  Dancing  in  the  Park  at  the  Castle  is 
a  particularly  happy  example  of  this  painter.  The 
alert  poise  and  young,  erect  grace  of  the  girl,  who 
stands  in  the  centre,  opposite  her  fantastic  partner, 
is  the  centre  of  interest.  Idling  groups  of  dandies 
and  ladies  are  lounging  about  under  the  trees,  and 
two  quaint  children  in  full  Watteau  plaits  are  on 
the  steps  in  the  foreground.  It  radiates  the  spirit 
of  dance  and  the  lilt  of  the  Spring. 

There  is  an  old  French  poem  which  states  in 
rather  extravagant  terms  the  influence  of  Watteau: 

"...  Un  jour  Dame  Nature 
Eut  le  desir  coquet  de  voir  sa  portraiture. 
Que  fit  la  bonne  mere  ? 
Elle  enfanta  Watteau  !  " 

Pierre  Subleyras,  a  painter  of  Paris  and  Rome, 
1699 -1749,  is  here  represented  only  by  a  small 
replica  of  his  larger  picture  in  the  Louvre,  Christ 
in  the  House  of  Simon  the  Pharisee.  It  is  rather 
theatrical. 


Ube  ifrencb  ant)  Bnglisb  Scbools     155 

There  is  one  of  Nattier's  portraits  in  the  fifty- 
third  cabinet,  that  of  Maurice  de  Saxe,  afterward 
Marechal  of  France.  Jean  Marc  Nattier  began 
very  early  to  show  promise  as  a  painter;  when  he 
was  a  little  boy,  he  received  a  Royal  compliment 
from  Louis  XIV.,  —  he  made  a  drawing  from 
Rigaud's  portrait  of  the  King,  and  when  his 
Majesty  saw  it,  he  observed  to  the  boy,  "  Monsieur, 
continue  to  work  thus,  and  you  will  become  a  great 
man."  And  in  this  one  line  of  decorative  contem- 
porary portraiture,  Nattier  certainly  has  stood  su- 
preme ever  since.  With  a  wonderful  talent  for 
painting  a  plain  person  so  that  she  became  beautiful, 
while  the  likeness  was  retained,  he  grew  readily  in 
favour  among  courtiers.  A  mannerist,  a  "  make- 
up-man," and  a  genial  Court  pet.  Nattier  was  a  fit 
exponent  of  the  qualities  which  surrounded  him. 

Maurice  de  Saxe  is  a  familiar  name  to  many 
chiefly  as  having  been  the  lover  of  Adrienne  Le- 
couvreur.  The  French  actress  lent  him  thirty  thou- 
sand pounds  to  help  him  forward  in  his  career. 
Again  we  have  recourse  to  Carlyle,  who  says :  "  The 
reader  has  perhaps  searched  out  these  things  for 
himself,  from  the  dull  history  book?  Or  perhaps 
it  was  better  for  him  if  he  never  sought  them." 
Maurice  was  a  libertine,  and  many  passages  in  his 
life  are  best  unnoticed.  Later  he  turned  out  to  be 
a  great  war  tactician,  deserving  his  honours  in  this 


is6     XTbe  Hrt  ot  tbe  H)tes&en  6aUer^ 

field,  where  he  played  fairer  than  he  did  in  love. 
What  inimitable  irony  is  Carlyle's !  "  Marechal  de 
Saxe,"  he  continues,  "  A  glorious  ever-victorious 
Marechal;  and  has  an  army  very  high-toned,  in 
more  than  one  sense:  indeed,  I  think  one  of  the 
loudest-toned  armies  ever  on  the  field  before.  Loud 
not  with  well-served  artillery  alone,  but  with  play- 
actor thunder  barrels  (always  an  itinerant  theatre 
attends),  with  gasconading  talk,  debaucheries,  busy 
service  of  the  Devil,  and  pleasant  consciousness  that 
w-e  are  heaven's  masterpiece,  and  are  perfectly  ready 
to  die  at  any  moment !  "  The  death  of  Maurice  de 
Saxe  is  related  with  equal  spice  by  Voltarie:  "  Went 
down  in  a  rose  pink  cloud,  as  if  of  perfect  felicity : 
of  glory  that  would  last  for  ever,  wdiich  it  has  by 
no  means  done.  He  made  despatch;  escaped,  in 
this  world,  the  Nemesis  which  often  awaits  on  what 
they  call  '  Fame.'  By  diligent  service  of  the  Devil, 
in  ways  not  worth  specifying,  he  saw  himself 
Nov.  21,  1750,  flung  prostrate  suddenly:  'Putrid 
fever '  gloom  the  doctors  ominously  to  one  an- 
other: and  Nov.  30,  the  Devil  (I  am  afraid  it 
w^as  he,  though  clad  in  roseate  effulgence  and  melo- 
dious exceedingly)  carried  him  hom.e  on  those  kind 
terms,  as  from  a  Universe  all  of  Opera."  Maurice 
de  Saxe  was  the  author  of  a  volume  entitled  "  Mes 
Reveries;"  a  strange  "military  farrago,"  observes 
Carlyle,  "  dictated,  I  should  think,  under  opium." 


TTbe  jfrencb  an&  Bnalisb  Scbools    157 

This  Dresden  portrait  was  painted  when  the  Count 
was  still  young-,  in  1720,  before  the  glories  of  vic- 
tory had  so  set  him  up.  It  is  a  fitting  sample  of 
both  artist  and  man,  —  they  both  reflect  the  bom- 
bastic self-satisfied  vanities  of  their  period. 

Jean  Baptiste  Greuze  is  represented  here  as  a 
genre  painter;  we  have  none  of  his  pretty  enam- 
elled children  or  softly  simpering  ladies.  A  simple 
paterfamilias  is  reading  the  Bible  to  his  children, 
and  it  is  a  quiet  domestic  scene.  Greuze  as  a  youth 
fell  in  love  with  a  beautiful  girl,  in  a  social  position 
superior  to  his  own,  so  that  he  suffered  from  unre- 
quited love;  he  used  to  be  called  the  "love-sick 
cherub  "  by  his  playful  comrades.  This  tinge  of 
sentimentality  and  melancholy  he  transmitted  to 
nearly  all  his  works.  The  picture  in  Dresden  is 
not  by  his  own  hand,  being  a  copy  of  an  original 
in  Paris.  This  picture  created  a  great  sensation  in 
Paris  when  it  was  painted :  it  was  an  entirely  new 
style.  It  was  his  first  important  picture,  and  he 
became  famous  from  the  moment  it  was  exhibited 
in  the  Salon  of  1755.  His  ambition,  however,  was 
to  be  classed  among  those  who  painted  in  the  heroic 
style,  and  to  be  catalogued  as  a  genre  painter  was 
a  mortification  of  the  spirit  to  him. 

There  are  but  four  examples  of  the  glorious  art 
of  England  in  the  eighteenth  century  to  be  seen  in 
Dresden,  and  for  lack  of  a  better  place  they  will  be 


158     Zbc  Brt  of  tbe  H)resben  6aller^ 

considered  here.  These  pictures  are  in  the  fifty- 
eighth  cabinet,  with  the  exception  of  a  portrait  by 
Sir  Godfrey  Kneller,  which  is  in  No.  57. 

"  It  is  better  to  have  real  portraits,"  says  Walpole, 
"  than  Madonnas  without  end."  Sir  Godfrey 
Kneller  is  the  subject  under  discussion,  and  Wal- 
pole is  right  so  far  as  Sir  Godfrey  is  concerned.  It 
would  surely  have  been  a  pity  if  Kneller  had  painted 
Madonnas  instead  of  portraits,  for  they  would  un- 
doubtedly have  been  very  inferior  Madonnas, 
whereas  the  portraits,  although  not  fine  achieve- 
ments, are  at  least  interesting  as  preserving  some 
record  of  the  subject.  Sir  Godfrey  was  born  in 
Lubeck  in  1646,  but  he  is  recognized  as  a  painter  of 
the  English  School.  A  great  part  of  his  life  was 
passed  in  London.  Among  other  extensive  works, 
he  was  engaged  by  King  William  to  paint  the  Beau- 
ties at  Hampton  Court.  He  was  advised  against 
this  selection,  as  lacking  in  tact;  as  Lady  Dorches- 
ter put  it,  "  If  you  asked  for  the  portraits  of  all 
the  wits  at  Court,  would  not  the  rest  think  you 
called  them  fools  ?  "  We  have  not  one  of  his  "  beau- 
ties "  here  to  pronounce  upon,  but  only  a  portrait 
of  young  Lord  Euston.  Kneller  was  the  friend  of 
Steele,  Addison,  Dryden,  and  Pope.  He  was  of  a 
commercial  turn  of  mind,  however,  and,  on  many 
occasions,  painted  very  poor  pictures  on  the  strength 


Zbc  J'rencb  an&  Englisb  Scbools    159 

of  his  reputation,  satisfied  if  he  received  good  pay, 
whether  the  work  was  worthy  of  him  or  not. 

Sir  Joshua  Reynolds  is  most  inadequately  repre- 
sented in  a  life-size  portrait  of  Mr.  Will  James  in 
the  costume  of  the  Dunstable  Hunt.  The  picture 
is  hard  and  poor,  and  enough  to  make  an  English- 
man very  regretful  that  this  should  be  the  only 
example  of  this  great  master  in  the  Dresden  col- 
lection. 

There  is  also  an  indifferent  likeness  of  himself 
by  Enoch  Seemann,  a  painter  who  was  born  in 
Danzig,  but  who  came  to  London  as  a  boy  and  was 
educated  under  British  influences.  He  died  in 
London  in  1792. 

But  of  the  work  of  Sir  Henry  Raeburn  there  is 
a  specimen  as  fine  as  it  would  be  possible  to  produce. 
It  is  the  portrait  of  Sir  Lucius  O'Beirne,  Bishop  of 
Meath.  It  is  only  a  head,  —  not  at  a  first  glance  an 
important  work,  —  but  it  is  beautifully  soft  in  mod- 
elling, —  a  thoroughly  worthy  Raeburn  portrait. 

Raeburn's  special  power  is  one  which  is  difficult 
at  first  to  define.  There  is  a  marked  individuality 
of  touch,  which  baffles  one :  it  is  not  that  he  ideal- 
izes his  subject,  in  the  ordinary  sense,  for  his 
brawny  men  are  not  handsome;  but  in  a  keener 
way,  he  does  idealize,  and  that,  I  think,  is  the  real 
secret  of  his  art.  He  idealizes  the  character :  the 
traits  of  his  sitter.     If  the  man  before  him  is  a 


i6o     xcbe  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresben  Gallery 

good-natured  man,  Raeburn  makes  him  positively 
radiate  with  benevolence  and  good-will;  if  he  be 
a  clever  man,  Raeburn  paints  a  coy  expression  into 
his  eyes,  which  convinces  us  that  this  man's  wit  is 
simply  scintillating.  If  the  subject  be  an  intellectual 
man,  the  artist  puts  such  fire  of  penetration  into  his 
face  that  he  seems  to  intensify  the  man's  ability,  and 
the  picture  becomes  imbued  with  the  colossal 
thought  which  only  waits  for  utterance.  Thus, 
without  flattering  the  outward  person,  Raeburn  in- 
tensifies all  the  characteristics  of  his  subject,  so  that 
the  portrait  is  worthy  of  study,  not  only  as  a  repre- 
sentation of  the  person  as  one  sees  him  casually,  but 
an  interpretation  of  all  his  chief  moods  and  his  best 
thoughts.  It  is  not  alone  a  question  of  colouring, 
or  handling,  or  modelling,  or  composition,  or  any 
of  the  other  features  which  go  usually  to  make  a 
fine  work  of  art.  All  these  are  good,  —  excellent, 
—  but  can  be  met  elsewhere  in  equal  complete- 
ness. The  key-note  to  the  art  of  Raeburn  is  psychic 
idealization. 

Sir  Henry  Raeburn  began  life  very  simply.  An 
amusing  story  is  told  of  his  early  days,  when  he 
and  John  Clerk,  afterward  a  famous  judge,  were 
youths  together,  living  in  lodgings,  and  occasionally 
dining  with  each  other  to  discuss  the  world  and 
their  prospects.  One  day  Raeburn  was  invited  to 
dine  with  Clerk;    upon  sitting  down  to  table,  they 


Ube  jftencb  an&  Bnglisb  Scbools    i6i 

discovered  that  the  landlady  had  provided  three  her- 
rings and  three  potatoes.  "  Did  I  not  tell  ye, 
woman,"  exclaimed  Clerk,  rising  in  majesty  of 
wrath,  "  that  a  gentleman  was  to  dine  with  me, 
and  that  ye  were  to  get  six  herrings  and  six  pota- 
toes?" In  after  years,  John  Clerk,  then  Lord 
Eldin,  and  Sir  Henry  Raeburn  had  many  a  laugh 
together  over  their  youthful  hardships ! 

One  of  his  sitters  has  left  a  description  of  Rae- 
burn's  methods  in  attacking  a  portrait :  he  first  en- 
tered into  conversation,  so  as  to  get  his  subject  into 
a  pleasant  and  natural  mood,  then,  having  placed 
him  in  the  required  attitude,  he  stepped  back  and 
viewed  the  sitter  for  some  moments.  After  looking 
at  him  thus  for  a  time,  Raeburn  came  quickly  for- 
ward, and  painted  in  the  features  of  the  face  in  a 
few  moments,  without  either  drawing  or  bounding- 
line.  "  I  had  sat  to  other  artists,"  writes  this  gen- 
tleman, adding  that  their  method  was  different; 
that  they  made  careful  drawings,  and  filled  out 
details  with  conscientious  exactness,  "  They  gave 
more  of  the  man,"  he  says,  "  Raeburn  gave  more  of 
the  mind." 

Raeburn  was  a  member  of  the  Royal  Academy, 
of  the  Imperial  Academy  in  Florence,  of  the  Acad- 
emy of  Fine  Arts  in  New  York,  and  was  also  elected 
to  Honorary  Membership  in  the  Academy  of  Arts 
of  South  Carolina.     The  modest  invitation  of  this 


i62      Ube  Brt  of  tbe  BresDen  (Bailer^ 

latter  institution  was  gracefully  worded :  "  Your 
character  and  talents  have  been  our  admiration  for 
many  years;  we  have  named  you  as  an  Honorary 
Member  of  our  Institution,  and  should  you  accept 
it,  you  will  confer  a  favour  upon  us."  Raeburn 
accepted  this  courteous  election,  and  became  a  mem- 
ber also  of  the  Royal  Society  of  Edinburgh. 

Henry  Raeburn  was  sixty-seven  years  of  age 
when  he  received  a  summons  to  appear  before  the 
King  to  be  Knighted ;  he  was  then  appointed 
"  limner  and  painter  in  Scotland,  with  all  fees,  prof- 
its, salaries,  rights,  privileges,  and  advantages 
thereto  belonging." 

He  has  been  criticized  for  "  hoisting  his  people 
up  "  and  giving  a  "  pigeonhole  view  "  of  their  nos- 
trils; but  after  all,  there  is  no  one  who  can  better 
make  them  live  and  express  their  message;  not  a 
call  to  admiration  of  their  outward  beauty,  but 
a  call  to  the  comprehension  of  their  personalities. 


CHAPTER   VI. 

PASTELS  AND  MINIATURES,  WITH  LATE  GERMAN  AND 
ITALIAN  PICTURES  HANGING  IN  ADJOINING  ROOMS 

Pastel  is  what  might  be  called  a  pretty  art,  as  it 
was  practised  in  its  Golden  Age :  that  is,  in  the 
eighteenth  century.  It  is  distinctly  lighter  than  oils, 
and  not  of  the  same  character  as  water-colour. 
When  it  first  came  in  vogue  it  was  looked  upon  with 
some  suspicion,  for  unless  it  was  kept  under  glass 
the  texture  was  very  perishable;  but  its  beautiful 
freshness  and  durability  when  so  protected  won  for 
it  many  advocates.  It  did  not  darken  with  time 
like  oil ;  there  was  no  process  of  degeneration  possi- 
ble to  pastel,  for  when  the  pure  chalk  had  absorbed 
the  pure  pigment,  that  constituted  the  medium; 
and  it  was  unchangeable,  provided  that  the  pigment 
was  pure  in  the  beginning,  which  was  easily  con- 
trolled by  the  artist  himself.  Dampness  is  its  only 
enemy;  and  with  glass  before  it  and  with  a  proper 
backing,  that  is  not  a  very  formidable  foe. 

It  is  not  known  who  first  employed  pastel,  but 
163 


i64     Zbc  Hrt  ot  tbe  Dresden  (Bailer^ 

there  is  a  drawing  in  three  tones  by  Federigo 
Baroccio,  which  was  executed  in  1528,  and  may  be 
regarded  as  one  of  the  earHest  specimens  of  coloured 
chalk  used  as  a  deliberate  pigment,  and  not  intended 
simply  as  a  sketch. 

The  miniatures  and  pastels  in  Dresden  are  hung, 
some  in  Room  52,  and  some  at  the  extreme  oppo- 
site end  of  this  series  of  cabinets  on  the  ground 
floor,  the  rotunda,  63  on  the  plan.  Some  of  the 
pictures  mentioned  will  be  found  in  52,  but,  when 
this  fact  is  not  specified,  it  may  be  understood  that 
they  hang  in  the  Rotunda. 

Painters  in  water-colours  naturally  turned  to  a 
possible  pigment  which  should  be  applied  in  a  dry 
state.  From  distemper  to  pastel  was  an  easy  step : 
the  same  elements,  gum  and  water,  were  employed. 
These  gave  to  the  dry  colour  the  necessary  firmness 
to  compose  it  into  sticks.  When  driedMuto  a  paste, 
the  water-colour  pigment  actually  became  pastel. 
At  the  end  of  the  seventeenth  century  pastel  devel- 
oped, and  remained  the  fashionable  medium  for 
portraitists.  One  of  the  foremost  of  these  workers 
was  Rosalba  Carriera,  of  whose  pictures  the  Dres- 
den gallery  has  an  unusually  perfect  collection. 
Having  already  become  the  vogue  through  her  mini- 
atures, Rosalba  decided  to  adopt  the  new  vehicle, 
which  she  did  so  successfully  that  she  was  soon  in 
greater  demand  than  any  of  the  other  pastel  artists. 


pastels  ant)  /iDiniatures  165 

With  a  silvery  charm  of  touch  and  a  tendency  to 
flatter  her  subjects,  Rosalba  simply  captivated  the 
fashionable  world. 

Rosalba  Carriera  v^as  born  in  Venice  in  1675. 
She  showed  talent  early,  beginning  with  designs 
of  point  lace  and  fans.  The  influence  of  her  early 
training  is  visible  in  her  works.  Point  lace  and  fans 
are  almost  the  extent  of  her  accessories.  She  also 
decorated  snufif-boxes,  which  soon  led  her  into 
miniature  painting.  She  had  a  prosperous  career 
and  was  popular  in  Rome,  Modena,  Paris,  and 
Vienna.  Ten  years  before  her  death  she  became 
blind.  In  miniature  art  she  occupied  a  recognized 
position.  Her  miniatures,  although  affected,  do  not 
lack  freedom  and  grace.  The  cold  gray  tones  to 
which  she  became  accustomed  in  pastel  affected  her 
style  as  a  colourist  in  this  line  also.  She  is  melo- 
dramatic, and  she  is  often  at  fault  in  her  drawing. 
Still,  there  is  an  element  in  her  work  which  has 
kept  her  memory  alive.  Some  of  her  miniatures 
are  on  vellum,  painted  in  a  gum  medium,  by  a 
method  formerly  employed  by  French  painters  and 
illuminators  in  manuscripts. 

The  portrait  of  Rosalba  herself  shows  us  the  art- 
ist in  full  face,  taken  as  far  as  the  knees.  She  wears 
a  Polish  cap.  She  is  not  handsome,  her  expression 
being  rather  anxious  and  pensive.  Her  dress  is 
blue,  and  a  black  and  white  fur  pelisse  partly  envel- 


i66     ube  Brt  of  tbe  Dresden  Gallery 

ops  her.  She  looks  a  little  faded,  not  being  in  her 
first  youth,  but  the  eyes  show  penetration  and  are 
of  an  agreeable  grayish  blue;  her  mouth  is  firm, 
and  the  face,  instead  of  beauty,  exhibits  charac- 
ter. 

Rosalba  Carriera  was  a  simple  plodding  worker, 
in  a  time  when  art  was  suffering  a  decline.  Even 
in  her  generation  she  was  not  regarded  as  original 
or  great;  but  she  was  much  in  demand,  being  a 
sincere  worker,  and  a  faithful  portraitist  in  pastel; 
and  that  chanced  to  be  the  fad  of  the  hour.  Rosalba 
executed  many  likenesses  very  acceptably  and  was 
a  woman  of  some  chann,  though  far  from  an  inno- 
vator in  portraiture.  She  was  less  inspired  than 
La  Tour,  whose  faces  are  full  of  individual  expres- 
sion. Perhaps  we  should  not  find  her  very  inter- 
esting to-day,  were  it  not  that  she  kept  a  journal, 
which  was  printed  in  Venice  in  1793,  in  which, 
during  the  years  1720  and  1721,  she  jotted  down 
little  remarks  about  her  life  and  her  works,  fur- 
nishing an  interesting  and  piquant  account  of  her 
time  spent  in  the  French  capital.  In  the  Regency, 
in  the  midst  of  the  life  of  the  Court  of  Louis  XV., 
she  became  fashionable,  and  the  gay  world  paid 
her  its  utmost  compliment  by  ordering  portraits  by 
her  hand !  As  many  of  the  pastels  in  this  collection 
are  alluded  to  in  her  diary,  it  will  be  interesting  to 
examine  them  with  her  own  comments   in   mind. 


pastels  an&  /IDiniatures  167 

She  was  forty-five  years  of  age  when  she  went  to 
Paris. 

Rosalba's  name  was  derived  from  "  White  Rose," 
given  to  her  on  account  of  the  dehcate  floweriike 
quahties  of  her  work. 

Among  the  first  commissions  with  which  she  was 
favoured  in  Paris  was  a  portrait  of  Louis  XV.  at 
the  age  of  ten.  Dresden  possesses  this  miniature. 
It  is  in  Room  52.  A  few  privileged  visitors  were 
allowed  to  wait  on  the  young  Louis  at  Dejeuner. 
Rosalba  alludes  to  going,  on  such  an  occasion,  to 
finish  his  portrait,  and  relates  in  an  amusing  man- 
ner how  certain  small  accidents  occurred  during 
the  session.  In  August  she  received  this  commis- 
sion :  "  I  received  an  order  from  the  King  to  paint 
a  miniature  of  him  for  the  Duchesse  de  Ventadorn, 
and,  the  same  day,  I  commenced  another  little  por- 
trait of  his  Majesty." 

"  Aug.  3.  Ordered  the  ivory  for  the  miniature 
of  the  King. 

"  Aug.  19.  Commenced  the  portrait  of  the 
King." 

The  method  of  Rosalba  was  to  begin  by  sketching 
on  another  surface,  afterward  carrying  it  out  upon 
the  ivory.  She  made  a  finished  sketch  first,  and 
then  copied  it,  so  that  the  sitter  was  not  obliged  to 
pose  during  the  tedious  process  of  the  actual  minia- 
ture. 


1 68     ube  Brt  of  tbe  Dresden  Gallery 

September  27th  she  again  alludes  to  this  work : 
"  I  went  with  my  mother,  Giovanna,  and  M.  Jean, 
to  the  King's  cabinet.  I  worked  on  a  portrait  in 
miniature  on  a  card  fastened  in  my  box,"  The  por- 
trait of  Louis  XV.,  as  Dauphin,  No.  9,  is  the  one 
painted  in  1720,  in  Paris,  and  given  by  the  King 
later  to  August  III.  at  the  time  of  the  marriage  of 
the  Dauphin  to  the  daughter  of  this  prince. 

A  letter  to  Rosalba  from  M.  Crozat  on  August 
II,  1 72 1,  announces  the  death  of  Watteau:  "We 
have  lost  our  poor  M.  Watteau.  He  ended  his  days 
with  his  pencil  in  his  hand.  His  friends  are  about 
to  publish  a  discourse  on  his  life  and  works.  They 
give  due  homage  to  the  portrait  of  him  which  you 
painted  in  Paris  only  a  little  time  before  his  death." 
This  picture  is  alluded  to  in  the  Diary,  on  Febru- 
ary nth :  "I  undertook  to  paint  for  M.  Crozat  the 
portrait  of  M.  Watteau  in  pastel."  Watteau  was 
much  interested  in  the  work  of  Rosalba  Carriera, 
and  a  letter  from  his  friend,  Vleughels,  to  this  lady, 
in  1719,  has  the  following  clause:  "An  excellent 
man,  M.  Watteau,  of  whom  without  doubt  you  have 
heard,  has  the  greatest  desire  to  know  you,  and  to 
have  a  piece  of  your  handiwork :  in  return  will  send 
you  one  of  his.  .  .  .  He  is  my  friend;  he  lives 
with  me,  and  he  asks  me  to  present  his  most  humble 
respect  and  his  hopes  of  a  favourable  answer." 
Rosalba  apparently  agreed  to  the  proposition,  and 


ROSALBA    CARRIERA.  — *'lOUIS    XV.    (paSTEl) 


f»astel5  an&  /iDiniatures  169 

Watteau  had  his  wishes  granted,  for  in  her  diary 
for  1721  (when  she  was  in  Paris),  she  wrote:  "  In 
the  morning  I  paid  a  visit  to  M.  Watteau." 

Among  the  earhest  entries  in  the  Journal,  on 
June  17,  1720,  we  find  a  note:  "Made  an  agree- 
ment with  M.  Aran,  to  finish  for  him  an  Apollo 
and  Daphne."  In  the  miniature  room.  No.  3  cor- 
responds to  this  description. 

In  1720,  while  Rosalba  was  in  Paris,  she  was 
received  into  the  Royal  Academy  of  Painting  and 
Sculpture,  having  been  made  an  Academician  of 
San  Luca  in  Rome  in  1705,  and  in  Bologna  also  in 
1720,  on  her  way  to  Paris.  When  she  visited 
Vienna  in  1735  the  Empress  of  Germany,  Amelie, 
did  her  the  honour  of  becoming  her  pupil.  Her 
portrait  may  be  seen  here  in  pastel.  No.  20.  The 
tones  are  very  delicate. 

A  little  gratified  worldly  streak  displays  itself 
when  Rosalba  writes,  on  December  7th :  "I  went 
to  the  Academy;  while  I  was  away,  some  princesses, 
duchesses,  and  other  personages  came  to  our  apart- 
ments, where  they  found  my  mother."  She  relates 
with  the  pride  of  comradeship,  too,  that  M.  Hya- 
cinthe  Rigaud  made  her  a  present  of  an  engraved 
edition  of  his  portraits. 

Evidently  artists  in  those  days  had  to  deal  with 
bargain-driving  clients  as  well  as  they  have  in  our 
time!     Rosalba  remarks  tersely  in  her  Diary:    "I 


17°     'C^be  Brt  of  tbe  H)res&en  Galleri? 

have  refused  the  proposition  to  make  two  portraits 
together  as  one."  No  allusion  is  made  as  to  the 
name  of  the  thrifty  person  who  had  tried  this  time- 
honoured  trick. 

The  Empress  Elizabeth,  wife  of  Charles  VI.,  is 
a  noble  and  gracious  princess,  to  be  seen  in  the 
portrait  No.  19.  She  wears  beautiful  pearls,  and 
a  diamond  clasp  secures  her  mantle  over  her  light 
reddish  gown. 

An  interesting  episode  in  the  career  of  Rosalba 
is  her  intimacy  with  Mariette,  a  writer  of  note  in 
her  day.  In  his  "  Abecedario,"  his  life's  work,  he 
tells  many  things  concerning  her.  He  greatly  ad- 
mired her,  and  certainly  must  have  been  the  victim 
of  an  ecstatic  enthusiasm  when  upon  one  occasion 
he  likened  her  to  Correggio !  He  wrote  a  sonnet 
to  her  of  which  the  general  trend  is  here  translated : 
"  To  the  virtuous  young  lady,  Rosalba  Carriera, 
celebrated  in  conversation,  in  song,  in  music,  and 
especially  excelling  in  the  art  of  the  painter."  He 
goes  on:  "Tell  me,  gentle  Rose"  (aube  sereine 
in  the  original  meaning  dawn  —  a  play  upon  her 
name),  "is  it  the  earth  or  heaven  that  has  given 
you  your  sweet  name?  Or,  by  reason  of  your 
numerous  talents,  are  you  the  flower  —  the  Rose  — 
and  the  Dawn  (aube)  of  all  virtue?  Seeming  a 
woman  of  earth  and  yet  a  goddess  celestial,  you 
have  equal  charm  whether  you  speak  or  sing;   the 


pastels  an5  /iDtniatures  ^71 

harmony  of  your  voice  enchains  our  souls,  while 
your  lyre  vanquishes  every  modern  Orpheus.  But 
when  I  admire  the  works  of  your  pencil,  I  am  con- 
vinced that  a  second  Apelles  is  reincarnated  in  you. 
.  .  .  Ah,  Dawn,  have  not  your  colours  given  the 
light  to  the  world?  "  Such  words  as  these  betoken 
the  euphuism  of  sentimental  decadence.  Nothing 
could  be  less  deserved  than  such  adulation  applied 
to  indifferent  art  productions.  Mariette  is  evidently 
a  chronic  flatterer.  He  writes  in  a  letter  September 
19,  1726:  "The  Count  de  Morville  has  placed  in 
his  cabinet  one  of  your  works.  For  neighbours  it 
has  Rubens,  Paul  Veronese,  Giorgione,  Andrea  del 
Sarto,  and  Poussin.  Let  me  assure  you  in  all  truth- 
fulness, the  painting  of  Rosalba  possesses  graces 
which  are  not  to  be  found  in  any  master  of  our  cen- 
tury. I  can  assure  you  that  your  picture  causes 
M.  de  Morville  and  his  friends  the  most  extreme 
pleasure." 

Rosalba  had  certainly  many  admirers  in  high 
places.  In  a  letter  Colle  exclaims :  "  You  have 
proved  yourself  master  of  an  art  which  Guido  Reni 
himself  could  not  have  surpassed."  Such  testi- 
monials, whether  deserved  or  not,  must  have  been 
highly  gratifying  to  the  artist.  August  III.,  the 
art-loving  King,  was  one  of  Rosalba's  chief  admir- 
ers. Pie  collected  numerous  works  by  her  hand,  and 
his    minister    was    instructed    to    purchase    them 


172     XTbe  Brt  of  tbe  S)resDen  Gallery 

wherever  they  were  to  be  found.  One  day  August 
III.  heard  that  there  was  a  charming  pastel  by 
Rosalba  in  possession  of  a  friend,  Donna  Marina 
Capitana.  The  King  asked  her  for  it,  and  was  re- 
fused; upon  that,  he  offered  in  exchange  150  gold 
sequins  and  a  magnificent  Dresden  china  service; 
this  was  too  large  an  offer  to  be  rejected!  He 
obtained  the  coveted  picture,  which  now  forms  one 
of  the  Dresden  collection. 

The  year  1723  was  one  of  triumph  for  Rosalba. 
She  was  invited  to  Modena  in  order  to  paint  the 
portraits  of  the  six  princesses,  as  well  as  that  of 
their  father,  Rinaldo,  Duke  of  Modena  and  Reggio, 
who  reigned  from  1694  to  1737.  We  have  here 
some  of  these  portraits.  From  them  we  may  judge 
of  her  success.  No.  3,  in  Room  52,  is  the  Princess 
Anna  Amelia,  Numbers  17  and  18,  in  the  same 
room,,  are  the  heads  of  Princess  Henriette  and  Prin- 
cess Anna  Amalia  Josef  a,  while  No.  10  is  the  Duke 
himself.  It  was  at  the  solicitation  of  their  grand- 
mother, Mme.  d'Hanovre,  that  these  portraits  were 
executed ;  as  Mariette  remarks :  "  she  had  her  rea- 
sons, too,  for  it  was  desirable  to  find  them  hus- 
bands !  "  Rosalba,  while  engaged  on  these  pictures, 
writes  to  her  sister  Angela :  "  Blessings  on  these 
princesses  and  their  father,  who  think  of  nothing 
but  to  make  it  agreeable  to  me  and  to  urge  me  not 
to  leave  here  as  long  as  I  find  it  pleasant  to  remain ! 


pastels  an&  /HMniatures  173 

At  every  touch  I  add,  they  exclaim,  '  This  is  su- 
perb !  This  is  the  most  beautiful  of  the  beautiful ! ' 
and  again,  '  But  you  work  too  much ;  there  is  no 
one  who  can  paint  with  such  ability ! '  I  have  not 
slept  for  two  nights;  I  don't  know  whether  I  am 
overworking  or  if  I  have  taken  cold."  The  Duke 
also  permitted  Rosalba  to  make  a  copy  of  his  Mag- 
dalen by  Correggio,  which  is  in  Dresden. 

Also  in  Room  52,  No.  7  represents  Frederick  IV., 
King  of  Denmark,  who  ordered  this  portrait  on  a 
visit  to  Venice  in  1709,  at  the  same  time  commis- 
sioning Rosalba  to  paint  miniatures  of  twelve  pretty 
Venetians  who  had  attracted  his  admiration.  No. 
8,  the  portrait  of  the  Abbe  Metastasio,  is  the  chief 
work  of  Rosalba  in  this  museum.  It  brings  the 
Italian  before  the  observer  like  actual  life,  and  is 
striking  in  its  lights  and  shades. 

Cardinal  Albani  was  another  of  Rosalba's  pa- 
trons, and  she  painted  four  pastels  for  him.  "  The 
picture  of  the  lovely  Muse,"  he  writes,  "  is  delicate 
beyond  my  hopes;  although  my  confidence  in  your 
rare  merit  exceeds  bounds."  There  are  several 
Muses  in  the  Rotunda  —  perhaps  this  is  among 
them. 

It  was  indeed  a  tragedy  when  Rosalba's  blindness 
began  to  creep  upon  her.  A  pathetic  letter,  in  1 749, 
tells  how  her  affliction  came.  "  It  is  three  years 
now,"  she  writes,  "  that  I  have  been  deprived  of 


174     Ubc  Hrt  ot  tbe  H)rest)en  (Bailer^ 

sight;  and  you  shall  learn  by  my  own  hand  how 
far  I  have  recovered.  I  see,  but,  as  is  usual  after 
an  operation  for  cataract,  rather  confusedly.  .  .  . 
While  I  was  blind,  I  cared  for  nothing.  Now  I 
long  to  see  everything,  but  I  am  forbidden  to  use 
my  eyes  much  until  after  I  have  submitted  to  a 
second  operation."  This  groping  for  help  was  of 
no  avail.  The  second  operation  was  not  successful, 
and  she  remained  blind  for  ten  years.  Her  last 
letter  to  Mariette  is  dictated  to  her  sister:  "I  see 
no  more  than  if  I  were  in  the  darkness  of  midnight. 
Imagine  my  grief  at  not  being  able  to  read  your 
beautiful  work !  " 

When  she  came  to  die  she  arranged  for  her 
funeral  beforehand  and  indicated  the  place  of  her 
burial.  She  passed  away  in  April,  1757.  The 
report  that  she  died  in  great  want  is  entirely  un- 
founded. Her  will  is  extant,  in  which  she  makes 
disposition  of  a  comfortable  small  property,  which 
would  have  been  impossible  had  she  been  indigent. 
She  founded  a  perpetual  mass  for  the  child  of  one 
of  her  poorer  friends;  she  left  two  hundred  ducats 
to  Felicita  Sartori,  her  favourite  pupil,  who  was 
then  the  wife  of  Counsellor  Hoffmann. 

The  other  pastels  by  Rosalba  in  Dresden  are 
principally  what  are  termed  "  fancy  pictures ;  "  em- 
blematic figures,  such  as  Charity  embracing  Justice, 
and  personifications  of  Europe,  Asia,  Africa,  and 


pastels  an&  /iDiniatures  17s 

America.  A  girl  holding  a  cock  in  her  arms  sym- 
bolizes Vigilance;  Minerva  stands  for  Wisdom; 
Justice  is  detected  by  the  inevitable  scales,  a  girl 
with  a  cup  of  water  typifies  Temperance,  while 
Truth  is  indicated  by  a  solemn-looking  personage 
with  a  mirror.  Spring,  Summer,  Autumn,  and 
Winter  are  also  seen,  painfully  lacking  in  original- 
ity as  to  their  attributes,  but  pretty  and  decorative. 
The  Fates,  with  their  spindle,  thread,  and  shears, 
are  seen  in  seventeenth-century  disguise.  Earth, 
Fire,  Air,  and  Water  also  occur  with  appropriate 
emblems.  Various  Virgins  and  Magdalens  are 
also  portrayed,  and  there  are  several  unknown  por- 
traits. Diana  figures  several  times  —  first  in  pink 
draperies,  then  crowned  with  flowers,  and  again 
with  pearls.  Once  she  wears  purplish  red,  and  once 
she  appears  with  the  crescent  over  her  brow.  In 
each  case  she  is  a  lady  of  the  period,  probably  "  as- 
suming a  virtue  which  she  has  not  "  in  electing  to 
be  portrayed  as  the  goddess  of  chastity.  When  one 
reads  of  the  revels  and  the  informal  dinners  and 
suppers  given  among  the  courtiers  of  that  period, 
one  readily  believes  that  all  the  ingenuity  of  the 
Greeks  was  turned  to  account  in  devising  risky 
situations,  to  which  the  addition  of  a  little  original 
French  spice  lent  a  flavour  quite  unique  among 
exotic  entertainments ! 

Rosalba's  pupil,  who  began  life  as  a  little  servant, 


176     Ube  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresden  (Bailer^ 

being  taken  from  this  career  by  her  discerning- 
teacher,  is  represented  in  Dresden  by  several  minia- 
tures, to  be  seen  in  the  fifty-second  room  in  the  Old 
Electoral  Collection,  which  was  presented  to  the 
Dresden  gallery  by  the  Elector  Frederick  Christian, 
about  1763.  This  pupil,  Felicita  Sartori,  was  a 
protegee  of  Rosalba  in  Venice,  after  which  she 
came  to  Dresden  to  work,  where  she  married  Hoff- 
mann, as  has  been  mentioned.  Her  miniatures  here 
are  chiefly  copies  from  pictures  by  Rosalba,  while 
some  are  reproductions  of  famous  pictures,  such  as 
Apollo  and  Marsyas  by  Longhetti,  Mercury  and 
Argus  by  Rubens,  and  Cignani's  Joseph  with  Poti- 
phar's  Wife,  the  original  of  which  is  among  the  late 
Italian  pictures  in  the  same  gallery. 

There  is  one  pastel  by  Guido  Reni  in  the  Rotunda, 
a  study  of  St.  Francis. 

Of  the  celebrated  Maurice  Quentin  de  La  Tour, 
born  at  St.  Quentin  in  1704,  we  have  two  examples. 
It  is  not  possible  to  judge  of  this  greatest  of  all  art- 
ists in  pastel  by  his  portraits  in  Dresden :  it  is  desir- 
able to  see  the  collection  at  St.  Quentin  in  order  to 
understand  how  broad,  free,  and  original  he  really 
was.  Count  Maurice  de  Saxe,  of  whom  we  have 
already  made  mention,  greets  us  here,  rendered  in 
pastel  by  La  Tour.  La  Tour  lived  with  his  brother, 
they  both  being  bachelors.  In  most  of  his  portraits 
the  chief  charm  is  in  the  extraordinary  and  vital 


pastels  ant)  /iDiniatures  177 

sparkle  of  the  eyes :  this  is  obtained  partly  by  his 
method  of  allowing  the  lower  lid  to  touch  the  pupil, 
which  always  gives  concentration  and  brilliancy. 
Diderot  alluded  to  the  "  light  and  life  "  in  the  faces 
of  La  Tour,  which  made  them  charming  quite  inde- 
pendently of  their  being  accurate  portraits  — 
which,  however,  they  always  were. 

A  list  of  the  works  of  La  Tour  reads  like  a  page 
from  the  Almanach  Royal :  kings,  queens,  dauphins, 
princes,  barons,  and  dukes  bristle  in  every  direction. 
His  own  portrait,  which  is  at  Amiens,  shows  a 
merry,  keen,  jovial  face,  with  twinkling  eyes  and  a 
smiling  but  roguish  expression.  He  has  painted 
himself  in  a  blue  velvet  coat. 

When  Quentin  La  Tour  returned  to  the  delightful 
little  town  of  his  nativity  —  St.  Quentin  —  he  was 
eighty  years  of  age,  and  had  achieved  much  fame. 
The  city  was  illuminated  for  his  reception,  and  the 
magistrates  headed  a  procession  in  festal  garb  to 
welcome  him,  while  the  bells  chimed  merrily.  If 
any  of  my  readers  are  familiar  with  the  bells  of 
St.  Quentin,  which  may  almost  be  said  to  play  pop- 
ular airs  every  fifteen  minutes,  they  will  be  able  to 
form  an  oral  impression  of  La  Tour's  home-coming. 

One  is  struck  in  glancing  at  the  group  of  pastels 
by  Raphael  Mengs  by  the  difference  in  tone  between 
this  painter's  works  and  any  other  portraits  in  the 
Rotunda.     They  are  much  warmer  than  the  rest. 


178     xrbe  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresden  6aller^ 

Tlie  silvery  quality  is  replaced  by  a  deep  golden 
tone,  almost  coppery.  Here  we  have  portraits  of 
himself  and  of  his  father,  Ismael  Meng-s,  v^ho  was 
also  a  painter  in  pastel  and  enamel  to  the  King  of 
Poland. 

Raphael  Mengs  was  regarded  by  enthusiasts  as 
the  equal  of  Raphael  Sanzio.  We  have  already 
seen  how  prone  the  connoisseurs  of  this  eighteenth 
century  were  to  make  much  of  their  pastel  artists. 
He  had  one  trait  in  common  with  La  Tour,  which 
was  lacking  in  Rosalba,  and  that  was  correct  draw- 
ing. His  delineation  is  always  good.  His  best 
works  are  in  Dresden,  so  that  one  can  form  a  better 
estimate  of  him  than  of  La  Tour.  There  are  also 
two  portraits  by  his  sister,  Theresa  Concordia 
Mengs,  in  one  of  which  Raphael  appears  in  person. 
From  this  and  from  the  two  other  likenesses  of 
himself  by  his  own  hand,  which  may  be  seen  here, 
we  may  form  some  idea  of  his  personal  appearance. 
The  one  in  the  red  coat.  No.  167,  is  full  of  life, 
a  bright,  interesting  face,  serious,  but  with  possi- 
bilities of  keen  penetration.  The  face  is  delightful. 
We  have  also  portraits  of  singers  and  painters ;  No. 
172  shows  us  the  Court  Painter,  Louis  de  Silvestre, 
of  whose  work  we  have  had  occasion  to  speak. 
King  August  HL,  who  was  so  influential  in  the  be- 
ginnings of  the  Dresden  gallery,  may  be  noticed  in 
No.  173,  and  the  Elector  Christian,  who  probably 


pastels  an&  /iDiniatures  179 

founded  the  Old  Electoral  Collection  of  miniatures, 
is  portrayed  in  No.  174.  The  pretty  Cupid  Sharp- 
ening His  Arrows  is  familiar  to  all  through  its 
frequent  occurrence  in  photograph  and  colour  prints. 

In  Room  52  we  have  a  number  of  the  interesting 
miniatures  of  Ismael  Mengs,  the  father,  chiefly 
religious  studies;  apostles  and  sacred  figures. 
Ismael  Mengs  was  a  native  of  Copenhagen,  being 
born  in  the  late  seventeenth  century ;  but  he  became 
Court  painter  at  Dresden  and  died  there  in  1764. 
A  few  miniatures  by  the  son  and  daughter  may  also 
be  seen  in  this  room. 

Perhaps  one  of  the  best  known  figures  in  art, 
familiar  to  every  child  in  America  since  it  has  been 
adopted  for  the  sign  manual  of  a  leading  firm  of 
chocolate  manufacturers,  is  Liotard's  celebrated 
Chocolate  Girl.  Here  in  Dresden  we  have  the 
original  of  this  famous  young  person,  standing  erect 
in  her  prim  clothes,  daintily  bearing  her  little  tray 
set  with  its  steaming  cup  and  a  glass  of  water.  A 
very  delicate,  coquettish,  Dresden-china  genre  this 
is,  charmingly  simple  and  straightforward  of  pur- 
pose, and  exquisitely  typical  of  the  French  matu- 
tinal atmosphere  of  the  eighteenth  century.  No 
wonder  she  has  such  a  reputation!  With  her  pink 
cap  and  yellow  bodice  and  gray  skirt,  she  is  herself 
a  confection  in  tender  shades  and  lines.  The  pic- 
ture is  on  parchment;  and  the  quality  is  exquisite. 


i8o     XTbe  Hrt  ot  tbe  S>resDen  Gallery 

Jean  Etienne  Liotard  was  born  in  Geneva  in  1702, 
and  was  a  great  success  with  his  pastels,  miniatures, 
and  enamels.  He  was  called  the  Turkish  Painter, 
because  he  spent  several  years  in  Constantinople. 
He  wore  the  Oriental  costume,  being-  an  original 
person,  and  quite  independent  of  comment;  he 
travelled  considerably,  living  for  a  time  in  France, 
Holland,  and  Italy.  He  died  in  Geneva  in  1789. 
His  model  for  "  La  Belle  Chocolatiere  "  was  Mile. 
Baldauf,  a  chocolate  girl  of  Vienna.  The  lovely 
Baldauf  made  such  an  impression  upon  the  Count 
Dietrichstein  through  her  portrait  that  he  fell  in 
love  with  her  and  finally  married  her.  Algarotti 
purchased  the  picture  and  gives  an  account  of  it  in 
a  letter  to  a  friend.  "  I  have  bought  from  the 
famous  Liotard  a  pastel  about  three  feet  high.  It 
represents  in  profile  a  young  German  femme  de 
chamhre,  who  carries  a  tray  upon  which  is  a  glass 
of  water  and  a  cup  of  chocolate.  The  picture  is 
almost  without  shadows  on  a  plain  background  and 
is  lighted  by  means  of  two  windows  whose  reflec- 
tions appear  in  the  glass  of  water.  The  work  is 
in  delicate  half-tints  with  insensible  gradations  of 
light  and  in  perfect  relief.  It  is  not  mannered; 
and  although  painted  in  Europe,  it  is  almost  in 
Chinese  taste.  They  are  the  enemies  of  shade,  as 
you  know!  As  to  the  finish  of  the  work,  to  sum 
it  up  in  a  word,  it  is  a  Holbein  in  pastel !  " 


LIOTARD.  THE    CHOCOLATK    CARL 


Ipastels  an^  /iDiniatures  iSi 

The  picture  of  La  Belle  Lyonnaise,  No.  162,  is 
a  portrait  of  the  artist's  niece,  Mile.  Lavergne. 
Liotard  himself,  in  his  Turkish  attire,  may  be  seen 
in  No.  159.  It  is  said  that  in  Paris  Liotard  was 
considered  a  little  dry  and  hard  in  finish :  his  col- 
ouring is  very  low  in  tone  and  the  French  con- 
sidered his  carnations  too  pale ;  but  that  is  a  matter 
of  fashion. 

Among  the  miniatures  are  several  by  a  well- 
known  Dresden  painter  in  enamel,  Sophie  Dinglin- 
ger;  they  are  chiefly  family  portraits  in  the  artist's 
own  circle.  The  Preuss  Collection  comprises  forty- 
nine  busts  of  celebrated  rulers,  chiefly  copied  from 
portraits  by  noted  artists.  The  collection  was  owned 
by  Herr  Friedrich  Preuss,  who  donated  it  in  1843. 
Most  of  these  portraits  are  familiar.  Several  Popes 
and  Emperors,  Kings  and  Queens,  are  here  set 
before  us,  prettily  displayed  in  the  alluring  tex- 
tures of  ivory  and  fine  colour.  There  is  also  a 
collection  which  was  bequeathed  in  1858  by  Carl 
Leopold  Christoph  von  Reitzenstein,  one  of  which, 
No.  135,  Portrait  of  Jerome,  King  of  Westphalia, 
is  by  Isabey.  The  Grahl  Collection,  presented  in 
1891  by  the  widow  of  the  painter  himself,  consists 
of  seven  ivory  miniatures  by  August  Grahl,  who 
was  bom  in  Mechlenburg  in  1791,  and  studied  in 
Berlin,  ending  his  life  in  Dresden  in  1868.  Well- 
known  historical  characters,  Thorwaldsen,  Countess 


i82     ubc  Brt  of  tbe  2)rest)en  Oallen? 

Potozka,  and  Princess  Elizabeth  of  Prussia,  here 
appear. 

While  we  are  on  this  lower  floor,  it  is  well  to 
glance  through  the  other  rooms,  which  contain 
chiefly  late  Gennan  pictures,  although  there  are 
several  late  Italians  represented  here  also,  among 
them  the  interesting  Canaletto. 

Anton  Graff's  excellent  portraits  of  himself  may 
all  be  seen  in  the  fifty-fifth  room,  one  as  a  young 
man,  and  one  a  full-length  figure,  seated  with  his 
palette  and  brushes  and  a  delightfully  alert  expres- 
sion on  his  face,  a  masterly  study  of  himself  in  old 
age.  He  was  a  good  painter.  He  was  professor 
at  the  Dresden  Academy,  and  died  in  this  city  in 
1813.  His  likeness  of  Dr.  Ernest  Platner,  No. 
2180,  B,  is  especially  to  be  commended,  but  all  his 
portraits  are  well  worth  looking  at. 

The  well-known  Vestal  Virgin  by  the  mellifluous 
Angelica  Kauffman  is  here.  One  does  not  appre- 
ciate the  charm  of  this  painting  from  any  of  its 
numerous  copies.  There  is  a  beautiful  quality 
about  the  dark  white  draperies  which  has  never  been 
quite  reproduced.  Her  "  Young  Lady  as  a  Sibyl," 
too,  is  fresh  and  channing  in  a  delicate  robe  of 
sweet  soft  blue.  Angelica  Kauffman  had  a  roman- 
tic if  not  a  pleasant  career  in  private  life.  She  was 
taken  at  the  age  of  fifteen  to  Milan  to  study  paint- 
ing, working  afterward  in  Naples,  Rome,  and  Ven- 


Ipastels  anD  /iDiniatures  183 

ice.  In  England  she  also  became  very  popular,  and 
was  made  a  member  of  the  Royal  Academy  in  1768. 
She  was  twice  married,  once  to  an  impostor  who 
called  himself  Count  Horn,  and  later  to  an  early 
love,  who  did  not  prove  to  be  much  more  satisfac- 
tory! Goethe,  while  deriding  the  puerile  sentimen- 
tality of  Kaufifman,  nevertheless  pays  this  tribute 
to  her  technical  skill :  "  No  living  painter  surpasses 
her  either  in  grace  of  representation  or  in  the  taste 
and  capacity  with  which  she  handles  her  brush." 

An  excellent  picture  by  Raphael  Mengs  hangs 
here,  —  in  fact,  the  same  subject,  Joseph's  Dream, 
is  treated  twice  by  him.  Raphael  Mengs's  father, 
being  a  miniaturist  himself,  wished  his  son  to  follow 
art  as  well.  When  the  lad  was  only  thirteen,  he 
used  to  shut  him  up  to  copy  all  day  in  the  Vatican, 
with  only  a  piece  of  bread  and  some  water  for  re- 
freshments :  he  was  not  allowed  to  come  out  until 
he  had  accomplished  the  day's  task. 

The  delightful  little  children  by  Christian  Vogel 
used  to  be  considered  portraits  of  the  artist's  two 
sons ;  but  the  picture  is  now  thought  more  probably 
to  represent  a  couple  of  the  Schoenberg  Princes. 
The  composition  is  charming  in  every  way,  and  the 
attitudes  of  the  children  unaffected  and  natural  as 
they  play  with  their  toys  and  picture-books. 

Balthasar  Denner,  a  German  painter  of  the  early 
eighteenth  century,  painted  some  studies  which  hang 


i84     Ubc  Hrt  ot  tbe  2)res&en  Galleri? 

here.  The  benign,  wrinkled  face  of  the  Old  Lady 
with  a  Golden  Kerchief  is  exceedingly  well  done. 

The  head  of  a  boy  with  a  flute  by  Christian  Sei- 
bold,  No.  2092,  is  a  nice  bit  of  work,  not  in  the 
fashion  of  our  day  to  be  sure,  but,  we  must  admit, 
an  accurate  and  pleasing  example  of  the  style  of 
the  early  eighteenth  century.  Seibold  was  a  pupil 
of  Denner,  whose  work  we  have  just  mentioned. 
This  was  a  conscientious  school,  if  lacking  in  atmos- 
pheric illusions! 

Christian  Dietrich,  Court  Painter  in  Dresden 
during  the  middle  of  the  eighteenth  century,  domi- 
nates three  rooms  in  this  section.  His  pictures  are 
various,  ranging  in  subject  all  the  way  from  naked 
boys  in  a  pond  to  the  Holy  Family,  and  from  Shep- 
herds and  Cupids  to  warriors,  prodigal  sons,  and 
lute-players.  Nearly  fifty  pictures  await  the  atten- 
tion of  the  sightseer  who  has  plenty  of  time !  Die- 
trich was  a  general  eclectic.  He  fell  into  the  man- 
ner first  of  one  master  and  then  of  another,  indul- 
ging his  tastes,  doubtless,  and  amusing  himself,  but 
not  leaving  a  very  substantial  legacy  to  art. 

The  rooms  on  the  other  side  of  the  entrance-hall 
—  thirty-nine  to  forty-three  —  contain  some  more 
of  the  late  Italian  pictures.  A  few  are  worth  notic- 
ing, but  there  are  not  many  masterpieces  stowed 
away  in  these  apartments.  In  Room  Number  Forty- 
one,  Giorgio  Vasari,  the  writer  whose  invaluable 


IPastels  anC>  /iDtuiatures  185 

works  are  a  quarry  for  all  Italian  art  biography,  is 
represented  by  a  picture  of  the  Mother  of  Christ 
and  the  Magdalen,  with  the  body  of  the  Saviour. 
The  four  Evangelists  may  be  seen  in  the  four  cor- 
ners. The  picture  is  small  and  rather  pleasing. 
The  tone  is  cool.  Vasari  is  not  a  great  painter, 
but  this  is  a  really  good  example  of  his  work. 
Vasari  does  not  at  all  realize  that  he  is  one  of  a 
declining  school.  He  says  calmly :  "  We  paint  six 
pictures  in  a  year,  while  the  earlier  masters  took 
six  years  to  one  picture,  and  yet  these  pictures  are 
much  more  perfectly  executed  than  those  of  the 
early  school  by  the  most  distinguished  masters." 
He  considers  that  technical  finish  is  the  aim  of  art ; 
he  has  no  idea  of  the  true  value  of  progress  or  of 
the  necessity  for  original  thought  in  composition. 

Sassoferrato  occupied  a  position  in  Roman  art 
similar  to  that  taken  by  Carlo  Dolci  in  Florence. 
There  is  a  Virgin  and  Child  of  his  here,  which  is 
curiously  effective  in  its  lighting.  The  painting  is 
thick,  the  drapery  of  red  and  blue,  and  the  halo 
rather  dull.  Wilkins  says  that  this  picture  "  gives 
out  light  like  a  plaster  cast,"  owing  to  the  use  of  a 
certain  white  medium. 

In  the  forty-third  room,  the  St.  Onophrius  was 
painted  by  Vasco  Pereira,  who  painted  in  Seville 
between  1579  and  1585,  but  who  was  a  Portuguese 
by  birth.     His  colouring  is  usually  harsh,  although 


i86     Ube  Brt  of  tbe  E)rest)en  (Balleri? 

he  drew  well.  Pereira  was  employed  by  Vargas  to 
paint  a  fresco,  which  offended  Pacheco,  because  Our 
Lord  was  represented  as  wearing  only  a  tunic ! 

In  the  forty-second  room  we  have  the  Daughter 
of  Herodias  again,  with  the  head  of  John  the  Bap- 
tist. It  is  by  Lo  Spada  (Pietro  Marascalco),  who 
has  signed  his  name  clearly.  The  colour  is  interest- 
ing. There  is  a  crisp  yellowish  green  tone,  comple- 
mented by  a  mere  tint  of  pink. 

There  is  also  a  Flemish  copy  of  the  Lotto  Virgin 
and  Child  with  Four  Saints,  the  original  of  which 
is  in  the  Bridgewater  gallery;  the  copy  hangs  in 
No.  43.  In  41  there  are  two  good  copies  of  Gior- 
gione,  —  an  old  Astrologer  casting  the  horoscope 
of  a  boy,,  who  lies  on  the  ground,  while  a  young 
man  in  armour  and  a  woman  in  white  stand  by. 
The  astrologer  sits  before  a  ruin,  where  a  broken 
statue  of  Venus  stands  in  a  niche.  There  has  been 
some  suggestion  that  the  female  figure  in  this  pic- 
ture might  represent  Lucretia  Borgia,  but  the  only 
reason  given  for  this  theory  is  the  fact  that  in  the 
corner  of  the  picture  there  appears  an  eagle,  which 
was  the  "  family  bird,"  so  to  speak,  of  the  Estes. 

The  kneeling  St.  Francis  de  Paula,  in  the  pic- 
ture by  Francesco  Solimena,  in  the  fortieth  cabinet, 
is  commending  a  boy  to  the  Virgin  and  Child  who 
appear  in  the  clouds  above.  St  Francis  de  Paula 
was  godfather  of  Francis  I.,  and  he  is  here  sup- 


Ipastels  an&  /Miniatures  187 

posed  to  be  interceding  for  his  godson's  welfare. 
St.  Francis  de  Paula  lived  in  Calabria,  where  he 
founded  an  order,  of  which  the  motto  was  "  Cari- 
tas,"  He  died  in  1507.  Another  example  of  Soli- 
mena's  work  has  been  noted  in  another  place. 

And  now  to  close  our  observations  on  the  late 
Italians  it  is  necessary  to  cross  the  entrance-hall  on 
the  ground  floor  and  proceed  in  the  opposite  direc- 
tion, until  we  arrive  at  Cabinet  No.  57.  Here  we 
have  another  Repentant  Magdalen,  this  time  by 
Pompeo  Battoni,  which  tries  us  by  its  extremely 
uncomfortable  attitude,  reading  from  a  book  at  an 
almost  impossible  angle.  It  is  affected  and 
thoroughly  unintellectual,  though  quite  popular 
among  those  who  mistake  contortion  for  grace 
and  regard  maudlin  inanity  as  a  symptom  of  re- 
ligious exaltation. 

Here  is  a  half-length  figure  of  a  man,  with  a  pair 
of  spectacles  in  his  hand,  painted  by  Giuseppe 
Nogari  in  the  eighteenth  century,  which  is  treated 
in  the  extreme  of  the  "  sfumato  "  style,  but  which 
is  very  attractive,  as  is  also,  in  the  sixtieth  cabinet, 
a  study  of  the  Apostle  Peter,  which  is  positively 
feathery  in  its  softness  of  outline.  It  is  the  hazy 
flickering  of  the  light  that  is  going  out. 

Magnasco's  works  have  often  been  ascribed  to 
Salvator  Rosa.  He  is  not  a  very  well-known  artist, 
and  there  are  four  excellent  specimens  in  Dresden 


i88     zhc  Hrt  of  tbe  Bres^en  (Balleri? 

from  which  he  may  be  studied;  two  landscapes 
hang  in  Cabinet  65,  while  the  others,  studies  of 
nuns  and  monks,  are  in  No.  59.  In  the  64th  cabi- 
net we  have  an  example  of  the  work  of  Longhi  —  a 
portrait  of  a  lady  in  a  cap  and  veil,  No,  595.  The 
elaborate  etiquette  of  the  complaisant  eighteenth 
century  was  portrayed  by  Longhi  in  Italy,  as  much 
as  by  Watteau  and  Lancret  in  France.  The  superb 
self-satisfaction  of  that  society  which  was  so  bril- 
liantly flowering  on  the  surface  while  its  roots  were 
suffering  from  blight  and  degeneration  shows  it- 
self in  the  courtly  display  of  upholstered  human 
beings  who  were  ashamed  of  any  genuine  emotions. 

The  works  of  Canal  and  Canaletto  are  to  be  seen 
in  this  section  of  the  gallery  in  great  profusion. 
These  topographical  portraits  are  unique,  and 
although  to  be  seen  in  nearly  all  collections  of  any 
magnitude,  they  have  always  a  certain  charm  of 
their  own.  It  will  be  well  to  distinguish  between 
Antonio  Canal  and  his  illustrious  nephew  and  pupil, 
Bernardo  Belotto,  known  as  Canaletto. 

Antonio  Canal  was  a  Venetian,  living  from  1697 
to  1768.  His  father  was  a  scene  painter,  a  fact 
which  accounts  for  the  panoramic  quality  of  Canal's 
paintings.  His  tastes  ran  rather  to  architectural 
subjects,  and  six  of  his  finest  pictures  of  Venice  are 
to  be  seen  in  Dresden,  hanging  in  the  series  of 
rooms  from  55  to  58. 


pastels  an&  /iDiniatures  189 

Canal  visited  England  in  1746;  Walpole  says, 
"  he  was  then  in  good  circumstances,  and,  it  is 
said,  came  to  vest  his  money  in  our  stocks."  He 
remained  about  two  years,  and  painted  many  Eng- 
lish pictures. 

Bernardo  Belotto,  or  Canaletto,  was  born  in  Ven- 
ice in  1720;  he  studied  with  the  elder  Canal  and 
after  some  years  went  to  Dresden.  His  paintings, 
of  the  city  in  his  time,  are  most  interesting  to  com- 
pare with  the  same  views  as  they  appear  now.  In 
Rooms  60,  61,  and  62,  we  have  Canaletto's  studies 
of  Dresden ;  they  are  not  especially  beautiful  as 
pictures,  but  are  faithful  representations  of  the 
place  in  the  eighteenth  century.  Canaletto  can 
hardly  be  classed  as  a  landscape  painter.  He  oc- 
cupies a  position  toward  the  works  of  man  similar 
to  that  occupied  by  Claude  and  Salvator  toward  the 
works  of  nature.  His  pictures  are  records  of  build- 
ings instead  of  hills  and  rivers ;  the  practical  side 
of  residential  and  business  interests  are  emphasized 
instead  of  the  charms  of  solitude  and  romance.  The 
views  of  Pirna,  No.  618  to  627,  are  attractive.  The 
little  Market  Place,  No.  623,  is  a  delightful  mediae- 
val scene,  which  repays  careful  examination.  The 
interesting  steep-gabled  buildings,  the  old  towers 
with  their  exotic  spires,  lead  up  to  the  distant  for- 
tress of  Sonnenstein.  When  Canaletto  left  Dres- 
den, he  went  to  Warsaw,  and  we  have  here,  in  Nos. 


I90     "C^be  Hrt  ot  tbe  Wvcs^cn  (Balleri? 

634,  635,  and  636,  details  of  the  Saxon  Palace 
there. 

In  one  of  these  pictures,  signed,  1747,  No.  602, 
some  of  the  figures  are  portraits  of  notables  of  the 
period.  One  may  distinguish  Joseph  Frohlich,  the 
Court  Fool  of  August  the  Strong  and  August  III., 
the  painters,  Dietrich  and  Thiele;  Niccolo  Pozzi, 
called  Niccolini,  may  be  observed  from  his  unusual 
size.  The  queen's  physician,  Philippe  de  Violante, 
is  also  depicted,  and  Canaletto  himself,  making  a 
sketch  on  the  spot ! 

No.  607  shows  the  famous  Japanese  Palace  built 
by  August  the  Strong  about  1720;  while  No.  638 
shows  the  Kreuz  Kirche,  ruined  by  bombardment  in 
1 765 ;  the  tower,  however,  is  still  standing.  This 
collapsed  in  the  following  June,  so  that  this  picture 
was  the  only  record  of  its  appearance  before  that 
time.  Canaletto  died  in  Warsaw  in  1780.  His 
work  is  hardly  as  fine  as  that  of  his  uncle  in  some 
respects  —  in  artistic  arrangement  and  selection. 
He  was  among  the  first  to  recognize  that  sunlight 
gives  a  silver  glitter  rather  than  a  golden  glow  on 
the  objects  which  it  strikes  freely  in  the  open  air. 

In  Room  59  is  to  be  seen  Piazetta's  Young  Stand- 
ard Bearer.  It  is  a  dashing  broad  work.  The 
effect  of  the  profile  on  the  white  of  the  background 
should  be  noted. 


CHAPTER   VII. 

EARLY    FLEMISH,    DUTCH,    AND    GERMAN    PICTURES: 
DURER  AND  HOLBEIN 

By  an  arbitrary  and  unexplainable  plan,  the  ear- 
liest pictures  of  the  Flemish  and  Dutch  schools  are 
hung  in  the  rooms  at  the  end  of  the  gallery,  so  that 
we  must  wend  our  way  through  the  halls,  H,  J,  and 
K,  without  bestowing  a  glance  upon  the  fascinat- 
ing Rembrandts,  Rubens,  and  other  great  masters, 
and  examine  first  the  row  of  small  rooms  in  the 
right  wing  of  the  building.  In  the  corner  room, 
corresponding  to  the  one  occupied  by  the  Sistine 
Madonna  on  the  left  side  of  the  gallery,  we  come 
upon  another  treasure  of  this  priceless  collection  — 
the  precious  triptych  of  Jan  Van  Eyck,  who  must 
be  regarded  as  the  founder  of  the  Flemish  school 
in  the  early  fifteenth  century,  although  he  himself 
was  pupil  to  his  own  elder  brother,  Hubert  Van 
Eyck  (of  whose  work  we  have  no  example  here), 
and  who  shares  this  distinction  with  him. 

An  entirely  different  ideal  dominated  early  Flem- 
ish art   from  that  which   ruled  the   Italians,     To 

191 


192      Ube  Brt  of  tbe  Bres&en  Galleri? 

approach  Flemish  or  Dutch  pictures  with  intelli- 
gence one  must  change  one's  point  of  view  com- 
pletely. It  is  not  effect  which  we  must  seek;  it  is 
detail.  Tender  but  overexact  were  these  early 
Northern  artists.  Step  a  few  feet  away  from  one 
of  their  pictures  and  you  lose  the  chief  charm. 

In  this  exquisite  little  shrine  painting  of  Van  Eyck 
we  see  the  Virgin  and  Child  at  the  end  of  a  narrow 
chapel.  For  faithfulness  of  rendering  there  is  no 
specimen  of  this  master  more  interesting  than  this 
triptych.  Tlie  painting  of  the  elaborate  Oriental 
rug  on  which  the  throne  is  placed,  and  the  delicate 
brocaded  hanging  behind  the  Virgin,  are  worthy 
expositions  of  the  microscopic  productions  of  the 
early  Flemings.  Again  we  see  the  contrast  to  the 
Italians;  the  faces  are  so  finished,  so  smoothed 
down,  so  painstakingly  drawn,  that  the  effect  of 
beauty  is  quite  lost.  Texture  of  skin  is  evidently 
regarded  as  more  important  than  anatomical  struc- 
ture; clearness  of  delineation  of  eyes  and  eyelashes 
receives  more  attention  than  does  the  ultimate  ex- 
pression of  the  face.  What  William  Hunt  used  to 
warn  his  pupils  against  —  "  niggling  "  —  is  here 
supreme.  It  is  very  brilliant  and  very  perfect,  but 
it  is  "  niggling  "  nevertheless.  The  architecture,  — 
the  little  carved  caps,  —  the  sweet  little  bull's-eye 
windows,  the  tiny  triforium,  and  the  row  of  statu- 
ettes, —  all  are  in  keeping  with  the  sentiment  which 


JAN  VAN  EYCK.  CENTRAL  PANl-I.  OK  TRIPTYCH 


Durer  ant)  Ibolbein  193 

regarded  religion  as  a  jewel  to  be  enshrined;  no 
wonder  that  a  reaction  came  later,  and  workaday 
doctrines  were  carried  to  as  great  an  extreme! 

On  the  wings  of  the  altar-piece  we  notice  on  one 
side  the  Archangel  Michael  presiding  over  the  kneel- 
ing "  donor,"  while  on  the  other  side  St.  Catherine 
peruses  a  tiny  missal,  quite  oblivious  of  the  wheel 
which  lies  at  her  feet,  and  the  sword  on  which  her 
right  hand  rests.  These  wings  are  supposed  to 
represent  the  north  and  south  aisles  of  the  little 
central  chapel,  —  one  can  trace  the  groined  vaults 
which  offer  their  thrust  to  the  arcade,  and  the  side 
windows  beyond,  separated  by  pilasters  which  match 
the  capitals  of  the  nave.  The  upholstery  of  the  pic- 
ture, so  to  speak,  is  faultless  :  the  border  of  the  Vir- 
gin's robe  is  enchanting,  and  St.  Catherine's  ermine 
most  regal.  The  armour  of  St.  Michael,  too,  is 
delightfully  metallic.  This  school  of  work  —  of 
which  this  triptych  by  Van  Eyck  is  the  finest  exam- 
ple —  is  practically  miniature  painting  in  oils. 

One  of  the  exquisite  features  of  the  triptych  is 
the  landscape;  it  is  only  two  inches  high,  and  a 
half  an  inch  across,  but  in  it  may  be  seen  a  town 
(or  else  a  monastic  settlement),  and  a  foreground 
of  fields  with  little  trees,  blue  shado\\'y  hills  beyond, 
terminating  in  a  distant  Alpine  effect,  snow-capped, 
and  reaching  into  the  cloudless  sky.  As  Hamerton 
says :    *'  In  this  early  landscape  we  have  plenty  of 


194     Ube  Hrt  of  tbe  H)re5^en  Gallery 

detail;  nothing  is  slurred  over,  either  from  negli- 
gence or  in  obedience  to  any  theory  of  simplifica- 
tion." It  is  as  clear  and  sharp-cut  as  a  steel  en- 
graving. 

The  picture  was  probably  painted  for  a  portable 
shrine,  for  it  was  customary  for  grandees  in  those 
days  to  carry  with  them,  when  travelling,  a  religious 
picture.  It  may  have  been  the  oratory  companion 
of  the  famous  Philip,  Duke  of  Burgundy,  —  Philip 
the  Good,  who  was  a  patron  of  Jan  Van  Eyck,  and 
often  visited  the  painter,  as  well  as  paying  him  the 
more  practical  compliment  of  renting  his  house  for 
him!  Calls  at  the  studio  from  this  Duke  were 
hailed  with  joy  by  master  and  apprentice  alike,  for 
Philip  never  left  the  workshop  without  showering 
gold  upon  the  workers  to  right  and  left.  He  also 
employed  Jan  Van  Eyck  to  go  on  delicate  diplomatic 
missions  for  him,  which  is  the  final  test  of  the  con- 
fidence which  he  placed  in  the  artist.  The  first  of 
these  little  trips  was  made  in  August,  1426,  and  is 
alluded  to  as  "  a  certain  distant  pilgrimage  and 
secret  journey,  of  which  no  further  mention  need  be 
made." 

The  triptych  was  originally  ascribed  to  Albrecht 
Durer,  and  has  been  thought  the  work  also  of 
Hubert  Van  Eyck;  now,  however,  the  question  as 
to  its  identity  seems  to  be  settled.  While  the  dra- 
peries are  very  rich  in   detail,  there  is  the  early 


Burer  ant)  Ibolbein  195 

Flemish  disregard  for  general  effect,  so  that  they 
fail  to  strike  one  as  graceful.  The  characteristic 
sharp  crinkly  folds  usual  in  pictures  of  Jan  Van 
Eyck  are,  however,  absent  in  this  composition. 

As  to  the  much  discussed  question  of  the  inven- 
tion of  oil-painting,  it  seems  evident  that  Jan  Van 
Eyck  can  hardly  be  said  to  have  "  invented  "  this 
art;  rather,  he  perfected  the  adaptation  of  oil  in 
mixture  with  coloured  pigments.  The  discovery 
was  gradual,  and  the  result  of  constant  experiment : 
Jan  was  perhaps  the  first  to  produce  pictures  satis- 
factorily rendered  in  this  medium. 

A  Treatise  on  Architecture  by  Filarete  appeared 
in  1464,  in  which  are  certain  remarks  upon  oil- 
painting,  which  was  not  then  understood  so  well  in 
Florence.  "  In  Germany,"  says  this  Treatise,  "  they 
work  well  in  this  manner,  and  especially  distin- 
guished are  Master  Johan  of  Bruges  and  Master 
Roger"  (meaning  Roger  van  der  Weyden),  "who 
both  paint  admirably  in  oil-colours.  Question :  Tell 
me  how  this  oil  is  employed,  and  of  what  kind  is  it? 
Answer :  Linseed-oil.  Question :.  Is  it  not  very 
dull  ?  Answer :  Yes,  but  the  dulness  can  be  re- 
moved, though  in  what  way  I  am  unable  to 
state." 

Linseed-oil  was  used  freely  by  all  artists  who 
painted  in  that  medium  in  those  days.  There  is  a 
story  told  by  Palomino  about  a  Bohemian  artist 


196     Ube  Brt  of  tbe  Dresden  (Balleri? 

who  returned  late  one  night  to  his  home,  with  some 
fish  to  be  fried  for  supper.  There  being  no  oil  such 
as  was  customarily  used  for  culinary  purposes,  he 
directed  his  wife  to  use  linseed-oil.  The  result 
was,  however,  that  fish,  frying-pan,  and  all  were 
cast  relentlessly  out  of  the  window  by  the  disap- 
pointed artist :  for,  as  Palomino  observes,  "  Lin- 
seed-oil, at  all  times  of  a  villainous  flavour,  when 
hot,  is  the  very  devil !  " 

A  painting  by  Jan  Van  Eyck  was  once  taken  to 
Naples,  where  it  created  great  excitement.  The 
artists  flocked  about  it,  examining  it,  giving  it  the 
closest  scrutiny,  even,  as  a  chronicler  says :  "  put- 
ting their  noses  to  it,  and  clearly  perceiving  the 
strong  smell  which  it  had  from  the  admixture  of 
the  colours  with  oils;  nevertheless  it  remained  a 
secret  to  them."  This  first  example  of  oil-painting 
seen  by  Italians  caused  them  to  regard  it  as  a  vehi- 
cle to  be  applied  chiefly  to  miniature,  and  may 
account  for  the  contempt  in  which  oils  were  held 
by  Michelangelo,  who  said  that  fresco-painting  was 
the  work  of  men,  but  oil-painting  only  fit  for 
women ! 

The  time  of  Jan  Van  Eyck's  death  has  been 
assigned  to  the  year  1440.  There  is  a  register  in 
the  archives  of  Bruges  which  mentions  a  lottery 
drawn  in  1445  :  "  the  widow  of  Jan  Van  Eyck  — 
two  pounds,"  proving  that  Jan  was  not  then  alive. 


Durer  an^  Ibolbefn  197 

Both  the  brothers  Van  Eyck  had  very  striking  epi- 
taphs. Hubert's  reads  as  follows :  "  Take  warning 
from  me,  ye  who  walk  over  me.  I  was  as  you  are, 
but  am  now  buried  dead  beneath  you.  Thus  it  ap- 
pears that  neither  art  nor  medicine  availed  me. 
Art,  honour,  wisdom,  power,  affluence  are  spared 
not  when  death  comes.  I  was  called  Hubert  Van 
Eyck ;  I  am  now  food  for  worms.  Formerly  known 
and  highly  honoured  in  painting,  this  all  was 
shortly  after  turned  to  nought.  It  was  in  the  year 
of  the  Lord  one  thousand  four  hundred  and  twenty- 
six,  on  the  eighteenth  day  of  September,  that  I  ren- 
dered up  my  soul  to  God  in  sufferings.  Pray  God 
for  me,  ye  who  love  art,  that  I  may  attain  to  His 
sight.  Flee  sin :  turn  to  righteousness :  for  you 
must  follow  me  at  last." 

Jan's  epitaph  is  almost  as  solemn,  and  both  show 
that  simple  direct  faith  and  honest,  ingenuous  virtue 
which  helped  to  make  the  serious  Northern  nations 
stalwart  and  reliable :  "  Here  lies  Johannes,  who 
was  celebrated  for  his  surpassing  skill,  and  whose 
felicity  in  painting  excited  wonder.  He  painted 
breathing  forms,  and  the  earth's  •  surface  covered 
with  flowery  vegetation,  completing  each  work  to 
the  life.  Hence  Phidias  and  Apelles  must  give 
place  to  him,  and  Polycletus  be  considered  his  infe- 
rior in  art.  Call,  therefore,  the  Fates  most  cruel, 
who  have  snatched  from  us  such  a  man.    Yet  cease 


198     Ube  Hrt  ot  tbe  Dresden  aaller^ 

to  weep,  for  destiny  is  immutable :  pray  only  now  to 
God  that  he  may  live  in  heaven." 

The  last  is  more  laudatory,  more  flowery,  savours 
more  of  the  Renaissance  than  the  first.  But  per- 
haps the  autobiographic  quality  of  Hubert's  epitaph 
accounts  in  part  for  its  modesty.  His  allusions  to 
"  art  and  medicine  "  probably  mean  to  apply  to  his 
own  skill,  not  that  of  an  attendant  physician,  for 
Hubert,  as  an  artist,  was  necessarily  also  a  chemist. 

The  gloomy  Roger  van  der  Weyden  next  claims 
our  attention.  Of  all  the  early  Flemings  he  is  the 
harshest  in  subject  and  treatment.  His  painting  of 
the  Crucifixion  may  be  seen  in  the  twenty-first  cab- 
inet. It  is  just  round  the  corner  from  the  lovely 
Van  Eyck.  Van  der  Weyden  was  a  pupil  of  Van 
Eyck,  and  the  teacher  of  Memlinc.  He  seems  to 
have  embodied  little  of  the  inspiration  which  he 
should  have  derived  from  the  one  and  have  trans- 
mitted to  the  other.  The  authenticity  of  this  pic- 
ture has  been  questioned,  but  it  is  still  catalogued 
under  the  master's  name.  Crucifixions  of  this  type 
recall  the  story  told  of  a  witty  remark  made  by  a 
Spanish  artist  when  pressed  to  give  an  opinion  of 
a  badly  painted  picture  of  this  subject.  Vargas  re- 
plied :  "  Methinks  He  is  saying,  '  Father,  forgive 
them,  for  they  know  not  ^^•hat  they  do ! '  "  It  is 
painful  and  misguided,  but  the  morbid  Roger  prob- 
ably meant  well,  for  he  was  a  painstaking  and  con- 


Durer  an&  Ibolbein  199 

scientious  person,  with  a  forecast  of  the  Puritan  in 
his  make-up.  He  was  born  in  Brussels,  where  he 
chiefly  worked  during  his  Hfe.  He  became  a  mem- 
ber of  the  Corporation  of  Pubhc  Works,  and  was 
appointed  Painter  of  the  City,  at  a  good  salary  for 
those  days  —  namely,  a  "  third  of  cloth  "  of  a  tex- 
ture finer  than  that  worn  by  architects.  He  was 
likewise  authorized  to  wear  his  mantle  over  his 
right  shoulder,  whereas  labourers,  "  varlets,"  and 
even  architects  were  allowed  to  throw  their  cloaks 
only  over  the  left  shoulder.  These  rituals  of  cos- 
tume were  closely  observed.  Van  der  Weyden  con- 
tinued prosperous  and  respected :  he  travelled  for 
awhile  in  Italy,  and  his  works  were  in  even  greater 
demand  after  his  return.  One  large  commission 
for  an  altar-piece  is  recorded  in  the  words  of  the 
Bishop  who  ordered  it,  as  follows :  "  On  the  six- 
teenth of  June,  in  the  year  1455,  I,  John,  Abbot, 
bargained  with  Mr.  Roger  van  der  Weyden,  the 
master  workman  in  painting  at  Brussels,  to  make  a 
picture  five  feet  square,  having  eleven  stories  of 
such  device  as  the  work  will  show."  The  prices  of 
parts  are  then  enumerated,  followed  by  the  state- 
ment: "and  was  likewise  paid  to  his  wife  and 
workmen  when  the  picture  was  brought,  two  pieces 
of  gold  of  four  livres  20  den;  it  was  brought  by 
the  carman,  Gillot  de  Gonguelien  du  Roquier " 
(quite  a  name  for  a  mediaeval  expressman!),  "in 


200     xibe  Hrt  ot  tbe  Dresden  (Bailer^ 

the  first  week  in  June,  in  the  year  59,  on  a  cart  with 
three  horses," 

This  gives  some  idea  of  the  scale  of  work  of 
which  Roger  was  capable.  This  worthy  Abbot 
John  used  to  join  the  illustrious  Philip  the  Good 
in  drinking  bouts,  and  it  is  recorded  that  Philip 
boasted  that  he  had  led  the  Abbot  into  such  bibulous 
excesses  that  he  had  been  known  to  vanish  under 
the  table! 

Roger  van  der  Weyden  and  his  wife  were  pious 
people  of  regular  life,  given  to  philanthropy.  After 
Roger's  death,  in  1464,  the  city  of  Brussels  discon- 
tinued the  post  of  municipal  painter,  so  that  he  was 
the  last  of  this  line. 

Of  the  greater  Flemish  painter,  Hans  Memlinc, 
we  have  no  work  here  which  is  authentic.  The  St. 
Christopher,  in  this  twenty-first  cabinet,  is  by  some 
member  of  his  school,  but  can  hardly  be  cited  as 
characteristic  of  the  master,  as  the  workmanship 
is  by  no  means  so  good.  In  an  old  English  ballad 
there  are  some  quaint  lines  referring  to  the  origin 
of  St.  Christopher's  name : 

"...  as  with  a  child  he  once  did  wade 
Under  his  load  midway  he  faints,  from  sinking  hardly  stayed. 
Admiring  how,  and  asking  who,  was  answered  of  the  child 
As  on  his  shoulders  Christ  he  bore,  by  being  humbly  mild, 
So  through  humility  his  soul  to  Christ  was  reconciled. 
And    of    his    carriage,    Christo-fer    thenceforth    himself    was 
styled." 


H)urer  ant)  Ibolbein  201 

If  one  travels  down  the  long  corridor  in  the  wing, 
one  will  find  in  the  Room  O,  a  possible  Memlinc 
in  the  Adam  and  Eve  under  the  Tree  of  Knowledge, 
No.  803,  but  the  attribution  is  quite  uncertain.  It 
was  originally  supposed  to  be  a  German  painting, 
but  later  authorities  consider  it  Flemish,  and  it 
strongly  suggests  the  work  of  Memlinc.  Beyond, 
in  the  room  marked  P  on  the  plan,  will  be  seen  a 
picture  after  Memlinc,  of  a  man  in  a  high  hat ;  this 
is  not,  however,  a  better  example  than  the  others. 
But  none  of  the  real  lyrical  charm  of  this  master 
can  be  seen  in  Dresden,  and  we  may  as  well  give 
up  any  attempt  to  judge  of  his  style  from  the  school 
pieces  here  to  be  seen. 

Marinus  van  Roymerswale,  a  painter  of  Zeeland, 
who  flourished  from  1521  to  1560,  is  the  author 
of  the  strange  crisp  picture  of  the  Money  Changer 
and  His  Wife;  it  is  a  curious  colour  scheme,  a 
cranberry  red  in  the  woman's  head-dress  contrasting 
more  acceptably  than  might  be  expected  with  the 
bright  red  jacket.  The  man  is  dressed  in  blue.  The 
clutching,  nervous  hands  would  be  sufficient  indi- 
cation of  the  spirit  of  greed  which  is  embodied  in 
this  composition,  even  without  the  mean  face  of 
the  man  exulting  over  his  profits.  The  woman  is 
young  and  good-looking. 

There  are  several  water-colours  by  Hans  Bol,  all 
in  one  frame.     They  are  paintings  on  vellum,  and 


202     ube  Brt  of  tbe  S)res&en  Gallery 

might  almost  be  considered  as  remnants  of  the  art 
of  the  illuminator. 

There  are  also  two  quaint  portraits  ascribed  to 
Lucas  Cranach  the  Elder;  they  are  painted  in  a 
curious  manner,  having  the  effect  of  coloured  var- 
nishes superimposed  on  a  gold  ground. 

In  visiting  Wittenberg  one  sees  the  house  of 
Luther  of  course;  that  is  presumably  the  goal  of 
the  expedition.  But  one  may  also  see,  if  one  will, 
the  house  of  Lucas  Cranach,  who  was  a  neighbour 
and  friend  of  Luther,  besides  being  Burgomeister 
of  Wittenberg.  At  different  times  he  was  court 
painter  to  three  princes,  —  Frederick  the  Wise,  John 
the  Persevering,  and  Frederick  the  Magnanimous. 
Cranach  also  visited  the  Holy  Land,  from  which 
he  seems  to  have  absorbed  little  local  colour,  though 
one  has  not  full  right  to  judge  of  his  power  as  a 
religious  painter  until  one  has  inspected  his  larger 
works  in  Wittenberg. 

An  original  by  the  master's  hand  is  Cranach's 
head  of  the  Margrave  George  von  Brandenberg;  it 
is  a  drawing  rather  than  a  painting,  and  is  in  the 
nature  of  a  sketch,  being  quite  unfinished.  It  is 
the  more  interesting  for  that :  it  shows  that  the  only 
trouble  with  Cranach  was  that  he  did  not  know 
where  to  stop.  He  was  guilty,  like  most  of  his 
German  contemporaries,  of  overfinish.  Had  he 
oftener  adopted  the  strong  lines  here  seen,  and  al- 


Durer  an&  Ibolbein  203 

lowed  them  to  remain,  he  would  have  been  a  more 
powerful  painter. 

Frans  Pourbus  the  Elder  is  represented,  but  not 
adequately.  This  twenty-first  cabinet  is  full  of 
gems,  and  it  is  well  to  examine  them  thoroughly 
before  tracing  continuity  from  artist  to  pupil  in 
other  rooms.  Jan  Mostaert's  figure  of  the  Magda- 
len in  a  black  cap  has  a  lovely  transparent  green 
background;  and  there  are  two  splendid  portrait 
studies  by  Anton  Mor,  —  the  bust  of  a  Canon  of 
Utrecht,  the  native  town  of  Mor  (some  consider  it 
an  early  example  of  his  master,  Jan  Scorel),  the 
other  of  a  fair,  bearded  man  in  a  fur  coat  and  a 
black  cap,  which  is  now  pronounced  as  a  mature 
work  of  Mor.  It  is  forceful.  The  facial  expression 
is  of  great  vitality.  There  is  an  ingenuous  little 
picture  on  copper  of  Adam  and  Eve  under  the  Tree 
of  Knowledge.  It  is  the  work  of  a  follower  of 
Cornelis  van  Haarlem,  originally  catalogued  as  un- 
known German. 

Of  Cranach  the  Younger,  we  have  a  few  por- 
traits in  this  room ;  the  Elector  Moritz  of  Saxony 
and  his  wife  Agnes,  No.  1945,  a  bust  of  the  Elector 
Augustus,  rendered  on  millboard,  and  a  study  of 
the  Elector  Moritz  bareheaded.  No.  1948.  The 
Elector  Augustus  may  be  seen  again  in  armour, 
painted  by  the  Saxon  Court  painter  of  the  late  six- 


204     Zbc  Brt  of  tbe  S)res&en  Gallery 

teenth  century,  Zacharias  Wehme.  Other  works  are 
considered  in  the  next  chapter. 

The  effect  should  be  observed  of  the  deHciously 
luminous  colours  in  the  backgrounds  of  the  por- 
traits, Nos.  1964,  1 87 1,  and  839,  as  they  hang  in 
order  upon  the  wall ;  one  is  exquisite  green,  one 
dull  red,  and  one  of  clear,  fine  robin's  egg  blue. 
The  contrasting  tints  could  hardly  be  rivalled  by 
an  intentional  arrangement.  The  last-mentioned 
picture  is  a  portrait  of  a  bearded  man  holding  a  red 
book.  It  has  been  catalogued  as  a  Holbein,  and  as 
a  Mor,  but  is  now  given  to  the  Master  of  the  Death 
of  the  Virgin. 

The  great  Adoration  of  the  Magi  by  the  Master 
of  the  Death  of  the  Virgin  is  superb.  It  is  a  fine 
example  of  the  clear,  varied  colouring  of  this  master. 
There  are  many  of  these  painters  of  the  sixteenth 
century,  in  Germany,  who  are  known  only  by  their 
works;  the  names,  the  Master  of  the  Lyversburg 
Passion,  Master  of  the  Death  of  the  Virgin,  and 
Master  of  Liesborn,  having  been  applied  to  them 
in  default  of  their  own  names  being  forthcoming. 
This  master  was  a  native  of  Cologne,  and  almost 
all  that  is  known  of  him  is  the  fact  that  he  worked 
part  of  his  time  in  Genoa,  probably  acquiring  a 
little  Italian  grace  with  which  to  endow  his  works. 

The  detail  in  this  picture  is  sumptuous  in  the  ex- 
treme.   One  might  spend  hours  examining  its  intri- 


Durer  anD  Ibolbein  205 

cacies,  and  still  find  new  beauties.  The  costumes 
are  most  beautifully  carried  out.  The  landscape 
background  is  among  the  loveliest  in  German  art. 

In  this  cabinet  there  is  an  exquisite  speci- 
men of  Holbein,  the  double  portrait  of  Sir 
Thomas  Gonsalve  and  his  son  John.  It  is  dated 
MDXXVIII.  It  is  a  very  important  work  of  the 
master,  painted  during  his  first  stay  in  England. 
It  has  a  delicious  blue  background  verging  on 
green,  a  colour  much  loved  by  Holbein.  The  older 
man  has  a  bit  of  paper  in  his  hand,  upon  which 
he  has  been  writing.  Both  father  and  son,  with 
their  curiously  unshapely  faces,  are  looking  out  con- 
templatively to  the  right. 

Two  pictures  here  are  attributed  to  Bernard  van 
Orley,  who  came  under  Raphael's  influence  in  Italy. 
There  is  some  question  as  to  the  authenticity  of 
these  works  —  8io  and  8i  i.  One  is  a  Holy  Family, 
and  the  other  a  portrait  of  a  man  in  a  black  cap, 
formerly  assigned  to  Holbein.  The  religious  pic- 
ture is  full  of  theatrical  effect.  All  the  figures  are 
posing  deliberately,  and  there  is  a  great  show  of 
artificial  ruins  in  the  surroundings ;  broken  columns, 
crowned  with  weeds,  are  so  numerous  that  if  the 
stable  is  intended  to  be  under  an  inn,  as  is  so  often 
suggested,  the  superimposed  building  would  be 
highly  unsafe.  The  crumbling  stone  floor  and 
steps  add  to  the  effect  of  desolation  in  the  environ- 


2o6     ube  Hrt  of  tbe  H)rest)en  Gallery? 

ment.  Altogether  it  is  as  poor  a  picture  as  one 
has  often  the  opportunity  of  seeing. 

A  portrait  of  Bernard  van  Orley  himself,  by 
Albrecht  Durer,  hangs  near  by,  —  a  fascinating, 
thin,  intellectual  face  treated  with  frank  recognition 
of  anatomy,  the  head  relieved  against  a  glowing 
coppery  red  background.  It  is  a  spirited,  beautiful 
example  of  Diirer  as  a  portrait-painter. 

"  God  sometimes  granteth  unto  a  man  to  learn 
and  know  how  to  make  a  thing  the  like  whereof 
in  his  day  no  other  can  contrive."  So  wrote  Al- 
brecht Diirer;  no  character  is  better  adapted  to 
illustrate  this  remark  than  his  own. 

The  main  facts  of  Diirer's  life  may  be  traced  by 
applying  to  his  own  diary;  he  was  the  third  son 
in  a  family  of  eighteen  children,  and  the  parents 
seem  to  have  been  worthy  of  their  charge.  "  My 
dear  Father  was  very  careful  of  his  children,"  says 
Diirer,  "  to  bring  them  up  God-fearing  .  .  .  where- 
fore he  daily  taught  us  to  love  God  and  deal  hon- 
estly with  our  neighbours.  .  .  .  My  father  took 
special  pleasure  in  me  because  he  saw  that  I  was 
diligent  in  striving  to  learn."  After  having  been 
apprenticed  to  a  goldsmith,  whose  craft  he  absorbed 
readily,  Albrecht  was  put  under  the  guidance  of 
the  painter,  Michael  Wohlgemut,  for  a  period  of 
three  years.  He  enjoyed  and  ^-espected  his  master: 
"  During  that  time  God  gave  me  diligence,"  he  con- 


Durer  an&  Ibolbein  207 

tinues,  "  so  that  I  learnt  well ;  but  I  had  much  to 
suffer  from  his  lads."  Like  all  "  ugly  ducklings," 
in  youth,  he  was  misunderstood  by  the  stupid  or 
ordinarily  endowed  boys. 

Diirer  then  spent  four  years  in  improving  travel, 
and  on  his  return  was  married  according  to  the  very 
impersonal  European  custom.  ''  Hans  Frey  treated 
with  my  father,"  he  explains,  "  and  gave  me  his 
daughter,  Mistress  Agnes  by  name,  and  with  her 
gave  me  two  hundred  florins,  and  we  were  wedded." 
There  is  no  mention  of  an  ecstatic  wooing ;  it  ended 
as  such  matches  are  liable  to  do.  Incompatibility 
led  to  dislike ;  Pirkheimer,  Durer's  most  intimate 
friend,  even  goes  so  far  as  to  say  that  "  she  so 
gnawed  into  his  heart  and  to  such  a  degree  tor- 
mented him,"  that  she  actually  hastened  his  death. 
"  She  watched  him  night  and  day,  drove  him  to 
hard  work  .  .  .  that  he  might  earn  money  and 
leave  it  to  her  when  he  died."  Pirkheimer,  with  the 
intolerance  of  a  sympathetic  companion  who  thor- 
oughly understood  the  situation,  bursts  out :  "  But 
then!  Nothing  was  enough,  and  in  fact  she  alone 
is  the  cause  of  his  death!  " 

Diirer  went  on  an  extensive  Italian  journey  in 
1505,  taking  this  opportunity  to  escape  the  pesti- 
lence which  was  then  ravaging  Nuremberg.  His 
letters  from  Venice  to  Pirkheimer  are  among  the 
most  fascinating  historic  records  in  existence.   "  The 


2o8     ube  Brt  ot  tbe  Dresden  Galleri? 

nobles  all  wish  me  well,"  he  coyly  remarks,  "  but 
few  of  the  painters."  These  same  artists,  however, 
showed  g-ood  judgment  when  they  pronounced  his 
work  in  colour  inferior  to  his  black  and  white. 

The  whole  spirit  of  the  Renaissance  is  personified 
in  Albrecht  Diirer.  No  interest  in  life  was  a  closed 
book  to  him.  He  was  as  many-sided  as  the  age 
in  which  he  lived.  He  was,  in  his  religious  ideas, 
broader  than  a  Romanist,  yet  he  was  not  a  real 
Protestant.  His  scientific  studies  produced  a  won- 
derful mental  balance  which  made  him  capable  of 
seeing  all  sides  of  a  question.  While  he  was  de- 
voted, as  few  men  have  been  devoted,  to  "  art  for 
art's  sake,"  he  was  too  good  a  business  man  not 
to  insist  upon  just  payment  for  his  labours.  There 
is  a  letter  to  one  of  his  patrons  in  which  he  claims 
that  he  ought  to  receive  a  hundred  florins  more  than 
the  price  actually  paid;  he  assures  him  that  none 
but  the  best  colours  had  been  employed  (which  was 
certainly  true,  for  Durer's  colours  have  stood  the 
test  of  centuries),  and  that  for  ultramarine  alone  he 
was  out  of  pocket  to  the  amount  of  twenty-five 
florins.  He  concludes  by  observing  that  he  had  had 
another  offer  for  the  picture,  of  a  price  far  exceed- 
ing even  what  he  now  demanded,  but  that  he  had 
not  accepted  the  proposal,  as  he  so  greatly  valued 
the  friendship  of  the  present  purchaser  —  (and  here 
we  have  Diirer  as  a  diplomatist!)  —  "I  would  also 


2)urer  an&  Ibolbein  209 

rather  have  this  painting  in  Frankfort  than  any- 
where else  in  all  Germany,"  he  says,  "  It  will  be 
seen  by  many  artists,  who  perhaps  will  let  you  know 
whether  it  is  masterly  or  bad."  He  concludes  :  "  It 
will  last  fresh  and  clean  for  five  hundred  years," 
but  he  stipulates  that  he  will  not  be  responsible 
for  it  if  holy  water  be  sprinkled  on  it! 

Yet  throughout  all  these  wily  dealings  with  his 
fellow  men,  Diirer,  while  proving  himself  shrewd 
and  capable  of  looking  after  his  own  interests,  him- 
self complained,  "  I  am  a  fool  at  a  bargain."  He 
was  a  rollicking  free  spirit,  full  of  merry  good 
nature,  dropping  in,  doubtless,  at  the  Bratwurst- 
glocklein,  that  quaint  sausage  shop  and  restaurant 
which  is  built  out  on  one  side  of  the  church  of  St. 
Moritz,  suggesting  a  solution  for  some  of  our  mod- 
em parishes  which  wish  to  combine  their  spiritual 
ministrations  with  the  spirituous  entertainment  of 
the  bar,  —  a  fine  combination  of  church  and  saloon ! 
Or  he  went  with  a  few  congenial  fellows  to  the 
Goldner  Posthorn,  to  sip  the  good  wines  which 
were  there  to  be  tasted. 

Diirer  was  as  versatile  as  Leonardo  da  Vinci. 
He  was  not  content  until  he  had  mastered  various 
sciences  and  crafts;  and  painting  was  only  one  of 
his  many  forms  of  expression. 

If  his  figures  are  often  meagre  and  unsatisfactory 
from  an  aesthetic  point  of  view,  it  must  be  remem- 


2IO     'c;be  Brt  ot  tbe  S)res&en  Galleri? 

bered  that  his  standard  was  unique;  he  had  a 
theory  of  measurement  for  human  beings  which 
resulted  in  his  adopting  an  average  length  of  limb, 
an  average  cast  of  face,  an  average  height,  and  an 
average  corporosity :  after  making  numerous  meas- 
urements of  all  sorts  of  people,  he  finally  arrived  at 
a  general  idea  of  proportion  which  he  deduced  by 
combining  all  these  peculiarities,  and  reducing  them 
to  a  composite  type,  and  this  type  he  took,  quite 
arbitrarily,  as  his  ideal.  The  question  of  beauty 
was  entirely  secondary.  He  did  not  seek  for  beauty, 
or  rather,  he  found  satisfaction  in  the  contemplation 
of  types  which  to  our  eyes  lack  beauty,  but  which 
to  him,  undoubtedly,  were  full  of  some  grave  Teu- 
tonic charm,  not  always  easy  for  us  to  detect.  Some 
men  are  colour-blind.    Diirer  was  beauty-blind. 

To  describe  his  character,  we  quote  the  words  of 
Joachim  Camerarius,  an  intimate  friend,  —  and 
there  was  never  a  man  more  beloved  by  his  friends 
than  Diirer :  "  Whatever  conduced  to  pleasantness 
and  cheerfulness  and  was  not  inconsistent  with  hon- 
our and  rectitude,  he  cultivated  all  his  life  and  ap- 
proved even  in  his  old  age."  Truly,  this  is  the  joy 
of  living. 

We  have  here  the  opposite  extremes  of  Diirer's 
manner :  the  famous  Dresden  Altar,  painted  in  thin 
chalky  tempera,  with  its  shadows  hatched  in  linear 
treatment  —  practically  a  liquid  drawing  —  and  the 


2)urer  an^  Ibolbein  211 

remarkable  little  Crucifixion,  a  miniature  panel  deep 
and  rich  in  tone,  entirely  different  in  workmanship 
and  even  in  feeling  from  the  other.  No  better  con- 
trasts could  be  selected  to  illustrate  Diirer's  versa- 
tility. 

The  picture  known  as  the  Dresden  Altar  is  an 
early  work.  For  some  time  the  authenticity  of  the 
central  panel  was  doubted,  but  it  is  now  all  con- 
sidered to  be  the  work  of  Diirer.  The  central  pic- 
ture shows  the  Virgin,  a  homely  Teuton  enough, 
bending  over  her  child,  who  sleeps,  laid  out  on  a 
little  pillow.  Beside  the  sleeping  child  stands  a  curi- 
ous little  figure,  in  scale  a  pigmy  of  some  six  inches 
in  height,  brandishing  a  sort  of  fly-brush,  —  an  odd 
conceit,  it  is  intended  as  a  caricature,  but  the  mod- 
ern mind  has  little  clue  to  its  humour  as  such.  Pre- 
sumably it  burlesques  an  angelic  attendant,  with  a 
holy-water  sprinkler;  but  it  rather  suggests  a  me- 
diaeval page,  in  hose,  tunic,  and  girdle.  The  inex- 
plicable mop  held  aloft  is  baffling  in  its  significance 
on  any  other  hypothesis  than  the  angelic  one.  The 
child  is  almost  grotesque  in  its  hideousness.  It  is 
not  realistic  —  heaven  forbid  that  human  babies 
should  resemble  this  ugly  little  figure!  Hovering 
above  the  mother  is  a  flock  of  tiny  cherubs,  bearing 
a  severe  crown  of  metal  and  velvet.  Through  a 
plain  casement  window  in  the  background,  there  is 
shown  a  delightful  little  street  scene  in  mediaeval 


2  12     ubc  Brt  of  tbe  S)res&en  Galleri? 

Germany.  The  two  wings  at  the  side  of  this  compo- 
sition display  St.  Anthony  and  St.  Sebastian.  The 
latter,  attended  by  another  school  of  Cnpid-like 
ang-els,  has  his  hands  in  the  attitude  of  prayer,  while 
on  a  slab  in  front  of  him  a  tall  single  flower  stands 
in  a  perfectly  modern  and  mundane  glass  of  water. 
St.  Anthony,  grasping  steadfastly  an  open  book, 
modestly  and  firmly  keeps  his  eyes  lowered  to  the 
page  before  him,  while  about  his  head  hover  tiny 
sprites  of  the  strange  and  exotic  types  usually  recog- 
nized as  "  temptations  "  in  the  Middle  Ages.  These 
forms,  however,  could  provoke  only  aversion  or 
laughter  in  any  intelligent  saint,  according  to  his 
temperament!  The  technical  qualities  of  this  pic- 
ture are  highly  satisfactory.  Diirer  is  better  in  this 
medium  than  in  his  oils. 

Diirer's  morbid  attention  to  detail  resulted  from 
his  early  experience  with  a  goldsmith  and  an  en- 
graver. His  spaces  are  all  filled  with  most  exquisite 
minutiae.  In  this  he  resembled  other  Germans  of 
his  period,  but  he  used  his  details  in  a  more  brilliant 
way  than  any  of  the  others.  In  fact,  this  is  because 
Diirer  was  a  great  thinker,  and  if  he  needed  a  point 
of  light  to  bring  out  some  value  in  a  picture,  he 
would  not  be  content  to  stick  in  an  irrelevant  flower 
or  a  bird  which  bore  no  relation  to  the  subject  of 
the  picture ;  every  tiniest  trifle  is  considered,  and 
only  introduced  for  a  good  reason,  whether  that 


Durer  an&  Ibolbein  213 

reason  be  always  apparent  to  modern  observers  or 
not.  All  the  life  and  spirit  of  the  Renaissance  can 
be  traced  in  his  varied  works.  In  painting,  writ- 
ing, engraving,  and  in  philosophy,  he  is  the  leading 
spirit  of  the  Germany  of  his  day. 

When  a  painter  is  dominated  primarily  by  a 
passion  for  beauty,  it  not  infrequently  happens  that 
he  will  sacrifice  truth  and  virility  in  reaching  for  it. 
This  is  evident  in  the  works  of  the  Eclectics  and 
of  Carlo  Dolci  and  Guido  Reni.  The  more  intel- 
lectual apprehension  of  beauty  as  nature  in  its 
rugged  purity,  touched  with  the  ideal  inspiration 
of  thought  rather  than  sentimental  rapture,  is  a 
higher  conception. 

Artistic  culture  was  not  so  conscious  or  so  appre- 
ciative in  the  Netherlands,  in  Albrecht  Diirer's  time, 
as  it  was  in  Italy.  A  balmy  sensuousness  and  a 
recognition  of  the  true  ministry  of  the  aesthetic  side 
of  life  was  characteristic  of  the  Renaissance  in  Italy. 
Diirer,  writing  from  Venice,  feels  it :  "  Oh,  how 
I  shall  freeze  up  again,"  he  says,  "  when  I  turn  my 
back  on  this  sunshine !  Here  I  am  a  lord ;  at  home 
I  am  a  nobody!  " 

The  other  painting  here  by  Diirer  —  the  small 
Crucifixion  —  is,  as  has  been  said.  "  probably  the 
most  finished  of  Diirer's  works,"  and  "  a  miniature 
creation  "  of  singular  expressiveness.  It  dates  from 
1506.     It  was  painted  in  order  to  demonstrate  to 


2  14     Zbc  Hit  ot  tbe  H)res&en  (Bailer^ 

the  Italians  what  was  the  Northern  standard  of 
perfection  of  art  in  a  small  compass.  It  has 
achieved  its  mission :  it  has  proved  it  to  the  whole 
world.  It  was  executed  during  his  stay  in  Venice, 
in  1506,  which  date  appears  on  the  cross.  The 
loneliness  of  Calvary,  the  "  darkness  over  all  the 
earth,"  against  which  the  beautiful  figure  is  shown 
in  its  purity  and  grace,  are  emphasized  by  a  soft 
sunset  glow  in  the  background,  —  red  and  golden  in 
tone,  it  relieves  the  lower  part  of  the  composition. 
A  distant  hilly  landscape,  with  a  few  slender  trees 
against  the  illuminated  horizon,  and  a  low  stretch 
of  dark  sea  at  the  foot  of  the  hills,  give  a  sympa- 
thetic tone  and  sentiment  in  keeping  with  the  sub- 
ject. 

Diirer's  Procession  to  Calvary  is  a  copy  of  a  mon- 
ochrome in  possession  of  Sir  Frederick  Cook.  There 
is  also  a  copy  at  Bergamo. 

Diirer  is  the  link  which  forms  connection  between 
mediaeval  Germany  and  the  Renaissance.  He  still 
stands  as  the  one  great  typical  Teuton :  in  a  rough 
sense,  one  means  Diirer  when  one  alludes  to  German 
art,  and  the  popular  impression  is  that  Germany 
stands  for  these  characteristics,  at  least  in  the  period 
when  art  flourished  most.  But  modern  Germany 
and  its  art,  as  we  shall  see  later,  has  not  perpetuated 
such  traits. 

Hans  Holbein,  born  in  Augsburg  in  1497,  was 


Durer  anC)  Ibolbein  215 

one  of  a  family  of  painters.  When  still  a  youth, 
he  and  his  brother  went  to  work  in  Basle,  a  city 
extremely  inspiring  for  artists,  for,  according  to 
tradition,  there  was  at  least  one  learned  man  in 
every  house.  Holbein  attracted  much  interest  from 
the  Burgomaster  Meyer,  and  about  eight  years  after 
his  coming  to  Basle,  he  painted  the  celebrated  pic- 
ture, the  Madonna  of  the  Meyer  family.  After 
some  travelling  about,  Holbein  retunied  to  Basle, 
and  in  1520  became  a  citizen  and  a  member  of  the 
Painter's  Guild.  This  was  the  year  that  Luther 
was  excommunicated;  Raphael  died  in  that  year, 
and  the  meeting  of  the  Field  of  the  Cloth  of  Gold 
took  place  between  France  and  England.  It  was 
an  important  year  for  all  the  nations.  Erasmus, 
too,  settled  in  Basle  at  this  time,  and  he  and  Hol- 
bein became  friends.  The  portrait  of  Erasmus  may 
here  be  seen :  it  is  like  the  original  in  Longford 
by  Holbein,  and  is  probably  by  a  pupil  or  follower. 
It  hangs  in  the  twenty-first  cabinet.  Then  for  art- 
ists came  the  decline  in  prosperity  which  followed 
the  Reformation.  Holbein  found  it  difficult  to  earn 
his  living,  and  with  the  exception  of  Meyer,  he  had 
no  valuable  patrons.  He  turned  to  engraving,  in 
which,  unless  we  count  Diirer,  he  reigns  supreme. 
But  he  decided  that  there  were  more  lucrative  fields 
elsewhere;  so,  in  1526  "  IMaster  Haunce,"  as  he 
was  called,  arrived  in  England.     He  lived  for  most 


2i6     XLbe  Brt  of  tbe  5)ve5Den  (Ballerg 

of  the  remainder  of  his  hfe  in  the  historic  part  of 
London,  the  country  suburb  of  Chelsea:  Sir 
Thomas  More,  Nicolas  Kratzer,  and  Archbishop 
Warham  became,  through  Erasmus,  his  friends. 
With  the  exception  of  a  trip  back  to  Basle,  at  the 
time  when  the  plague  rendered  London  unsafe,  he 
remained  in  England.  Again  in  1543  the  plague 
visited  London;  and  this  time,  he  was  one  of  its 
victims.  There  is  no  record  of  the  day  or  place 
of  Holbein's  death,  nor  of  the  place  of  his  burial. 
The  Black  Death  came  and  claimed  the  painter,  just 
as  he  had  so  graphically  pictured  in  his  woodcuts 
of  the  Dance  of  Death,  and  we  can  imagine  the 
grim  figure  clutching  him  and  taking  its  revenge 
for  the  weird  satire  which  he  had  perpetrated,  by 
cutting  him  off  without  even  a  record  for  the 
world. 

We  turn  now  to  the  celebrated  Madonna  of  the 
Burgomaster  Meyer.  Holbein  painted  it  in  1526, 
just  prior  to  his  journey  to  England.  Until  1822 
the  Dresden  picture  was  considered  the  original,  and 
from  that  time  to  1871,  there  was  controversy  as 
to  whether  this  or  the  picture  in  Darmstadt  were 
the  true  portrait.  Finally,  in  1871,  there  was  a 
great  exhibition  of  Holbein's  works,  held  in  Dres- 
den, and  at  that  time  the  two  pictures  were  placed 
side  by  side.  It  then  became  evident  to  students 
and  critics  that  the  Darmstadt  Madonna  was  un- 


HANS    HOLBEIN.  —  THE    MADONNA    OF    THE    lU'RGOMASTER    MEYER 


Burer  an&  Ibolbein  217 

doubtedly  the  original,  and  that  the  Dresden  speci- 
men was  only  a  "  free  copy  by  some  unknown 
artist." 

The  subject  of  the  picture  is  the  Meyer  Family 
worshipping  the  Madonna  and  Child.  On  one  side 
the  Burgomaster  himself  kneels,  with  his  young  son, 
who  holds  an  unclothed  child,  pressing  it  protect- 
ingly  against  his  breast,  and  proudly  exhibiting  his 
now  vigorous  health  to  the  observer.  On  the  oppo- 
site side  the  two  wives  of  the  Burgomaster  appear, 
and  his  plain  little  daughter.  The  first  wife,  having 
died,  is  represented  dressed  in  the  grave-clothes  of 
that  period,  her  chin  swathed  as  is  usually  seen  in 
early  examples  of  shrouds  in  Germany,  as,  for  in- 
stance, on  the  quaint  stone  carvings  on  sepulchral 
monuments  in  Wittenberg. 

The  subject  of  this  painting  has  also  been  the 
cause  of  some  divergence  of  opinion.  One  critic 
thinks  that  the  child  in  the  Virgin's  anns  is  intended 
to  typify  the  soul  of  a  child  who  has  died  in  the 
Meyer  family.  Another  considers  that,  upon  the 
recovery  from  illness  of  the  child  who  stands  below, 
the  infant  Christ  assumed  the  disease,  which  was 
troubling  the  mortal  child  until  his  Saviour  took  it 
upon  Himself.  Ruskin  interprets  it  as  an  answer 
to  the  prayer  of  the  Meyer  family,  the  Madonna 
appearing  to  them  with  the  infant  Jesus :  "  She  puts 
down  her  Christ  before  them,"  says  Ruskin,  "  takes 


2i8     ube  Hrt  of  tbe  H)rest)en  (Balleri? 

their  child  into  her  arms  instead;  it  Hes  down  upon 
her  bosom  and  stretches  its  hand  to  its  father  and 
mother,  saying  farewell."  This  latter  interpretation 
is  poetic  and  beautiful,  and  is  borne  out  by  the  shy, 
weakly  little  child  in  Mary's  arms;  but  I  think 
possibly,  if  the  intention  of  the  picture  is  to  return 
thanks  for  restoration  to  health  of  a  sick  child,  that 
it  is  sufficient  to  say  that  the  sick  child  is  repre- 
sented as  recovered,  in  the  central  nude  figure,  and 
the  infant  Christ  is  extending  a  hand  in  blessing, 
Holbein  having  been  realistic  enough  to  represent 
him,  like  a  human  child,  as  a  little  overcome  with 
the  concourse  of  strangers,  and  therefore,  turning 
to  his  mother,  retiring  and  diffident,  though  obe- 
diently extending  his  hand.  The  tendency  of  Hol- 
bein's art  toward  literal  and  human  emotions  would 
account  for  such  a  method  of  representing  Our 
Lord  during  His  helpless  infant  years.  Holbein  was 
not  a  Romanist  himself,  so  that  he  would  see  no 
impropriety  in  departing  from  the  traditional 
path. 

Mr.  Russell  Sturgis  considers  that  the  facial  ex- 
pressions of  the  homely  people  in  the  Burgomaster 
Meyer  Madonna  are  more  truly  devout,  in  that  they 
are  "  more  concentrated  and  more  unconscious," 
than  those  of  Raphael,  Botticelli,  or  Ghirlandajo : 
they  have  certainly  a  quality  of  realistic  dutiful  so- 


H)urer  ant)  Ibolbein  219 

briety,  which  is  quite  lacking  in  the  more  artificially 
pious  faces  painted  by  the  Italians. 

In  the  days  of  Sir  Horace  Walpole  this  picture 
passed  for  the  portrait  of  Sir  Thomas  More  and 
his  family.  Walpole  calls  attention  to  the  discrep- 
ancies, which  were  just  beginning  to  be  realized  at 
the  time  when  the  picture  was  reinstated  as  the 
Meyer  Madonna.  His  remarks  on  this  subject  are 
interesting,  compared  with  those  of  later  writers, 
as  showing  the  various  stages  of  art  criticism.  In 
speaking  of  the  picture  Walpole  says  :  "  It  was  evi- 
dently designed  for  a  small  altar-piece  to  a  chapel ; 
in  the  middle  on  a  throne  sits  the  Virgin  and  Child ; 
on  one  side  kneels  an  elderly  gentleman  with  two 
sons,  one  of  them  a  naked  infant ;  opposite  kneeling 
are  his  wife  and  daughters.  The  old  man  is  not 
only  unlike  all  representations  of  Sir  Thomas  More, 
but  it  is  certain  that  he  never  had  but  one  son.  For 
the  colouring,  it  is  beautiful,  beyond  description, 
and  the  carnations  have  that  enamelled  bloom  so 
peculiar  to  Holbein,  who  touched  his  works  until 
not  a  touch  remained  discernible!  ...  By  the  de- 
scription of  the  family  picture  of  the  consul  Meyer, 
...  I  have  no  doubt  but  this  is  the  very  picture : 
Meyer  and  More  are  names  not  so  unlike  but  that  in 
process  of  time  they  may  have  been  confounded, 
and  that  of  More  retained,  as  much  better  known." 

Apropos  of  Sir  Thomas   More's  only  son :    the 


220     ^be  Hrt  ot  tbe  Dresden  (Balleri? 

child  proved  to  be  half-idiotic;  the  disappointed 
father  remarked,  "  We  have  prayed  so  long  for  a 
boy,  that  now  we  have  got  one,  I  believe,  who  will 
be  a  boy  so  long  as  he  lives !  " 

A  close  comparison  by  means  of  photographs, 
since  it  is  not  possible  to  study  the  originals,  syn- 
chronously, one  being  in  Darmstadt  and  one  in 
Dresden,  reveals  certain  significant  variations  in 
these  two  Meyer  Madonnas.  In  the  Darmstadt 
picture,  the  shell-shaped  niche  behind  Mary's  head 
is  squat  and  of  poor  proportions;  the  copyist  de- 
cided to  improve  upon  this,  and  so  raised  it  a  good 
deal,  giving  a  far  more  ideal  effect  of  height  to 
the  figure  of  the  Virgin.  The  face,  too,  is  idealized, 
and  really  "  prettified."  It  is  positively  amusing  to 
look  about  and  see  how  each  face  has  been  smoothed 
down  and  flattered !  The  long  ungainly  nose  of  the 
ungraceful  girl  has  been  pared  down  to  quite  a 
decent  shape;  and  most  of  the  rugged  character 
has  been  planed  out  of  the  Burgomaster.  The 
change  in  the  face  of  the  kneeling  boy  is  especially 
na'ive.  The  original  is  looking  down  in  an  unaf- 
fected way;  in  the  Dresden  copy  this  youth  is  look- 
ing coyly  out  of  the  corners  of  his  eyes  at  the  spec- 
tator! In  colour,  too,  there  is  quite  a  difference. 
The  blue  robe  of  the  Virgin,  in  the  Darmstadt  pic- 
ture, is  of  a  delicious  liquid  softness,  while  that  at 
Dresden  is  darker  and  much  less  interesting.    There 


Durer  ant)  Ibolbein  221 

are  many  other  notes  of  difference  between  the  two 
pictures. 

Holbein  was  as  accurate  in  his  details  as  Diirer, 
but  he  had  advanced  farther  than  the  other,  in  that 
he  understood  how  to  step  off,  as  it  were,  mentally, 
and  get  a  view  of  his  work  as  a  whole;  the  detail 
supplemented  the  general  effect,  but  did  not  domi- 
nate it  or  detract  from  it.  He  understood  broad 
values,  even  when  they  were  values  of  porcelain- 
like finish.  He  was  essentially  a  painter  of  the  old 
German  school,  no  breath  of  impressionism  had 
reached  him,  but  he  saw  clearer  than  Diirer  the 
value  of  combining  character  with  beauty.  He  kept 
his  own  individuality  out  of  his  pictures,  and  was 
faithful  in  rendering  likeness.  Diirer  had  set  up  a 
type  which  he  almost  invariably  used  when  free  to 
choose;  but  Holbein  went  each  time  to  the  special 
model,  and  his  skill  in  portraiture  was  endless  and 
marv^ellous.  So  clever  and  ready  was  Holbein  in 
catching  a  likeness  with  a  few  lines,  that  the  follow- 
ing story  is  told  of  him.  A  nobleman,  whose  name 
had  escaped  the  memory  of  the  artist  for  the 
moment,  had  been  visiting  his  studio.  In  conver- 
sation with  Sir  Thomas  More,  Holbein  wished  to 
allude  to  this  person.  Not  being  able  to  mention 
him  by  name,  Holbein  picked  up  a  bit  of  red  chalk, 
and  made  a  rapid  sketch,  which  Sir  Thomas  imme- 
diately recognized! 


222    ube  Hrt  of  tbe  ©resDen  (Bailer^ 

We  are  fortunate  in  having  in  Dresden  one  of 
the  three  portraits  which  are  generally  regarded  as 
Holbein's  best.  The  three  pictures  so  specified  are 
the  likeness  of  Jane  Seymour,  in  Vienna,  the  Por- 
trait of  George  Gyze,  in  Berlin,  and  the  Portrait 
of  Morette,  in  Dresden.  The  last  represents,  ac- 
cording to  more  recent  authorities,  the  envoy  from 
Francis  I.  to  England,  Charles  de  Solier,  the  Sieur 
de  Morette,  although  up  to  late  years  it  was  be- 
lieved to  be  the  likeness  of  a  famous  jeweller  in 
Henry  VHI.'s  service,  with  w^hom  Holbein  had  been 
intimate  in  England.  It  is  certainly  one  of  the  most 
important  portraits  in  the  world,  whoever  was  the 
original.  This  picture  was  once  attributed  to  Leo- 
nardo da  Vinci,  and  when  critics  began  to  find  rea- 
sons for  ascribing  it  to  Holbein,  the  King  of  Saxony 
would  not  encourage  the  name  being  changed,  as 
that  would  leave  the  Dresden  collection  without  a 
Leonardo,  and  all  the  European  galleries  prided 
themselves  upon  possessing  examples  of  da  Vinci's 
work.  So,  until  the  death  of  Friedrich  August  the 
picture  w^as  allowed  to  remain  as  a  Leonardo.  But 
after  his  death,  in  i860,  it  was  unanimously  re- 
stored to  Holbein,  and  is  as  perfect  a  specimen  of 
his  best  painting  as  can  be  seen  anywhere.  Dresden 
is  to  be  the  more  congratulated  upon  possessing  it, 
for  the  reason  that  the  honour  of  owning  the  orig- 
inal Meyer  Madonna  has  been  wrested  away  from 


PiL' 

t 

4'-.r^c^--  ^.  V. 

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Hi^V^flM^^^H 

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■  '>/ 

HANS     HOLBKIN.  PORTRAIT    OK    MORFITE 


Durer  ant)  Ifoolbein  223 

the  gallery.  Morette  is  a  remarkably  handsome 
man,  with  beautiful  eyes,  full  of  keenness  and  spirit. 
He  is  dressed  in  black  and  white,  the  varied  tex- 
tures of  satin,  silk,  fur,  and  damask  being  marvel- 
lously rendered.  The  chief  note  of  decided  colour 
in  the  picture  is  the  curtain,  of  liquid,  soft  green. 
A  gold  chain  is  about  his  neck,  and  he  holds  in  his 
gloved  hand  a  dagger  which  is  attached  to  his  belt. 
The  pose  is  dignified  but  easy.  The  painting  is 
finished  as  delicately  as  any  piece  of  jeweller's 
craft. 

From  a  study  of  the  drawings  of  Holbein,  one  of 
which  may  be  seen  in  the  same  room  with  the  fin- 
ished portrait,  we  learn  that  one  secret  of  his  power 
as  a  painter  of  likenesses  was,  that  he  did  not  wear 
his  sitters  out  with  long  painful  sessions,  making 
a  quick  but  thorough  sketch,  from  which  it  was 
possible  to  do  much  of  the  technical  part  of  his 
work  without  insisting  upon  hours  of  posing.  This 
is  the  reason  his  people  keep  their  animation,  and 
why  their  expressions  are  so  natural  and  alert.  He 
did  not  believe  in  flattering  his  subjects;  he  thought 
more  of  fidelity  to  nature  than  of  pictorial  effect. 
He  had  more  power  of  idealization  than  Diirer ;  he 
was  a  little  less  insistent  upon  ugliness;  but  he 
painted  what  he  saw. 

All  painters  of  the  German  school  selected  virility 
for  their  standard  rather  than  grace :   strength  had 


224     Ube  Hrt  ot  tbe  H)re6t)en  (Balleti? 

more  message  for  them  than  beauty,  Holbein's  art 
was  full  of  the  Renaissance.  Diirer's  was  conscien- 
tiously Gothic.  Holbein  gave  something  of  Italian 
idealism  to  German  sternness. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

OTHER   NETHERLANDISH   AND  GERMAN  ARTISTS 

Germany  and  the  Netherlands  in  the  sixteenth 
century  exhibited  a  strange  amalgamation  of  an- 
cient tradition  and  modern  mental  progress.  Until 
these  conditions  adjusted  themselves  there  was  war 
between  old  religious  sentiments  and  free  new 
thought,  and  the  result  was  unfavourable  to  the 
advancement  of  art.  By  the  early  seventeenth  cen- 
tury things  had  become  more  settled,  and  the  fact 
that  they  were  free  from  the  Spanish  domination 
made  it  possible  for  Flanders  to  develop  an  inde- 
pendent national  style,  — hardly  a  school,  as  it  was 
all  in  one  generation,  and  the  artists  left  no  follow- 
ers to  perpetuate  their  aesthetic  traditions.  The 
Dutch  school  was  created  for  the  expression  of  the 
daily  life  of  the  people;  not  consciously,  but  nat- 
urally, genre  subjects  canie  to  be  painted  when  the 
need  for  religious  pictures  had  passed.  With  Prot- 
estantism in  the  Netherlands,  as  in  Germany,  the 
subjects  selected  by  painters  had  changed. 

This  was  a  simple  portrait  art.  Whether  the 
225 


226     XTbe  Hrt  ot  tbe  Bres^en  Gallery 

portrait  to  be  executed  was  of  a  person,  a  street,  a 
building,  an  animal,  or  a  vase  of  flowers,  it  was 
photographically  faithful,  and,  in  many  cases,  ampli- 
fied far  beyond  this,  into  dainty  gems  of  atmosphere, 
texture,  and  expression.  In  Protestant  Holland  this 
realism  of  genre  portraiture  predominated,  while 
in  that  part  of  the  Netherlands  where  Spain  still 
wielded  influence,  the  religious  subjects  demanded 
by  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  continued  to  form 
the  themes  of  artists.  We  must  begin  our  study 
of  these  later  Flemings  and  Germans  by  examining, 
before  we  leave  the  wing  containing  the  Rooms  O, 
P,  and  O,  the  works  of  the  least  conspicuous  of  the 
sixteenth  and  seventeenth  century  masters  which 
hang  there.  The  task  will  not  occupy  much  time, 
for  any  visitor  to  the  Dresden  gallery  wishes  to 
escape  from  this  corridor  of  comparatively  uninter- 
esting landscapes  and  animal  studies  into  the  large 
halls  where  Rubens  and  Rembrandt  reign. 

The  St.  Catherine  in  the  style  of  Cranach  is  a 
bit  of  colour  to  be  noticed.  The  robe  of  olive  green 
relieved  against  the  deep  robin's-egg  blue  sky  is 
a  very  striking  scheme.  The  portrait  of  Henry  the 
Pious,  too,  by  Cranach  (1915),  is  decorative,  being 
in  dull  tones  and  very  highly  glazed.  This  bears 
the  monogram  of  Cranach  and  the  date,  1537. 

The  Adam  and  Eve  and  the  Lucretia  and  Judith 
are  four  panels  of  long,  thin  nudes.     They  are  a 


IRetberlanDisb  anb  (3erman  Hrtists  227 

rather  painful  row  of  lean,  mannered  personages. 
Wilkins,  in  his  "  Art  Impressions,"  makes  a  few 
very  intolerant  but  amusing  remarks  concerning 
these  works  of  Cranach  and  his  followers.  He 
begins  :  "  Truly  handsome,  well-proportioned  mod- 
els must  have  been  scarce  in  Cranach's  time,  or  else 
he  had  a  taste  for  the  lean :  his  works  conveying 
but  one  idea  —  that  of  utter  nakedness."  .  .  . 
"  they  make  one  ashamed  to  think  that  humanity 
could  be  so  very  plain !  "  "  Why,"  he  continues, 
"  the  cellars  of  Paris  or  the  hovels  of  Skibbereen 
would  display  finer  forms  than  that  of  Cranach's 
Adam  and  Eve,  who  stand  in  the  first  position  for 
a  Mazourka!"  Perhaps  Adams  and  Eves  are 
among  the  most  trying  of  all  subjects  to  early  paint- 
ers, who  had  no  available  human  models;  and 
among  the  later  artists,  who  had  perfected  technical 
appliances,  the  true  spirit,  the  larger  conception  of 
the  subject  of  the  Fall  of  Man  is  submerged  in  the 
simple  study  of  the  temptation  of  a  weak  man  by 
a  beautiful  woman ! 

The  large  and  blood-thirsty  winged  altar-piece  of 
the  Martyrdom  of  St.  Ursula  is  also  to  be  seen  in 
the  Room  O.  It  is  by  Jorg  Breu,  the  Master  of  the 
Guild  of  Augsburg.  The  work  is  going  on  apace. 
The  virgins,  to  whoin  such  rude  allusion  is  made 
by  Thomas  Hood,  when  he  puts  into  the  mouth 
of  his  travelling  maid  the  words  "  eleven  thousand 


228     ube  Brt  of  tbe  ©resben  aallerg 

old  maids,"  are  being  attacked  in  a  relentless  way, 
and  are  composed  into  an  alarming  scene  of  carnage. 
At  Cologne,  in  the  na'ive  little  church  of  St.  Ursula, 
this  tradition  is  explained  in  an  intelligent  way. 
No  claim  is  made,  or  ever  was  made,  that  St.  Ursula 
brought  eleven  thousand  companions  with  her  from 
Rome  in  the  slender  bark  in  which  they  are  fre- 
quently represented  in  art!  It  happened  that  there 
was  a  massacre  of  young  women  in  Cologne  in  that 
year,  and  among  those  slain  was  Ursula,  and  such 
attendant  maidens  as  had  come  with  her.  Eleven 
thousand  is  a  good  round  number,  and  one  might 
as  well  state  that  as  any  other;  at  any  rate,  piles 
of  human  remains,  bearing  the  marks  of  the  weap- 
ons used  by  the  Huns  and  Goths,  were  discovered 
in  one  spot :  these  were  all  the  bodies  and  skulls 
of  women;  there  is  nothing  impossible  about  the 
relics  displayed  in  this  interesting  Church.  Whether 
it  is  possible  to  prove,  at  this  distance  of  time,  that 
every  skull  there  displayed  is  the  actual  head  of  a 
virgin  who  was  martyred  on  this  occasion,  any  one 
may  determine  according  to  his  or  her  own  per- 
sonal credulity. 

The  studio  piece  of  Cranach  the  Elder,  David 
watching  Bathsheba  bathing,  is  extremely  quaint. 
The  coy  glance  from  the  eyes  of  a  girl  in  the  corner 
is  inimitably  amusing.  The  picture  is  a  good  deal 
out  of  drawing,   but  has   a  cheerful   charm   quite 


IRetberlanMsb  ant>  German  Hrtists  229 

independent  of  beauty  or  correctness.  It  is  Gothic, 
and  almost  in  the  spirit  of  grotesque. 

Of  the  Hercules  sleeping,  surrounded  by  pig- 
mies, by  Cranach  the  younger,  little  can  be  said 
except  that  it  is  an  absurdly  inadequate  treatment 
of  the  subject.  It  might  be  taken  for  a  study  of 
Gulliver  in  Lilliput  land !  A  little  army  of  gnomes 
are  hacking,  prodding,  and  shooting  at  the  hulking 
sleeper.  An  arrow  sticking  in  his  chin  seems  to 
cause  him  no  inconvenience,  and  does  not  disturb 
his  slumbers ! 

There  is  an  amusing  example  of  the  work  of 
Hendrik  Bles,  a  study  of  apes,  who  are  plundering 
the  wares  of  a  pedlar.  The  man  lies  sleeping  under 
a  tree,  and  the  ingenious  little  creatures  are  going 
through  his  pack,  using  everything  they  find  there 
in  some  original  way.  The  neckties  are  all  draped 
high  up  on  a  tree;  some  of  the  monkeys  have  put 
on  waistcoats,  and  thus  bedizened  are  approaching 
the  sleeping  pedlar.  One  thrifty  little  ape  is  drop- 
ping a  large  turkey  down  over  a  ledge  of  rock, 
apparently,  with  foresight,  for  future  use.  The 
picture  is  signed  with  an  owl,  which  was  the  em- 
blem of  Bles,  through  which  he  obtained  the  Italian 
nickname,  Civetta. 

There  is  a  very  attractive  piece  of  genre  painting 
of  uncertain  Dutch  authorship,  No.  849,  being  a 
double  portrait  of  two  girls,  holding  each  other  by 


230     Ubc  Hrt  of  tbe  H>res&en  0allers 

the  hand.  It  has  been  ascribed  to  Amberg-er  and 
to  Mor;  but  sufficient  evidence  is  lacking  to  pro- 
nounce it  a  genuine  example  of  either.  It  is  quite 
worthy,  however,  of  a  good  name,  and  no  one 
should  pass  it  by  without  attention  being  called  to  it. 

Jan  Scorel  was  a  friend  of  Albrecht  Diirer,  whom 
he  visited  in  Nuremberg.  His  works  have  usually 
a  good  deal  of  grace,  and  his  finish  is  refined  and 
delicate.  The  David  with  the  head  of  Goliath,  No. 
844,  was  once  ascribed  to  Angelo  Bronzino.  The 
sentiment  of  the  work  leans  toward  that  of  the 
Renaissance  Italian  style.  Scorel  painted  for  some 
time  in  Italy,  sojourning  in  Rome,  and  visiting  Ven- 
ice. The  results  of  his  observation  are  notice- 
able in  his  work,  which  is  not  characteristically 
Dutch. 

Peter  Brueghel  the  Elder,  nicknamed  the  Droll, 
was  one  of  the  first  to  interpret  the  vulgar  life,  in 
the  primitive  form  of  genre  painting.  "  The  mon- 
strous," remarks  Fielding,  "  is  much  easier  to  paint 
than  describe;  and  the  ridiculous  to  describe  than 
paint."  In  Brueghel's  Peasants  Brawling  he  has 
combined  to  a  remarkable  degree  these  qualities, 
and  has  managed  to  paint  both!  Brueghel  worked 
in  Antwerp  and  Brussels.  He  had  certain  of  the 
naive  rustic  qualities  of  Millet.  He  is  by  many 
pronounced  to  be  the  first  appreciator  of  the  rural 
picturesque. 


IRetberlanMsb  an&  German  Hrtists  231 

In  the  Temptation  of  St.  Anthony,  formerly  at- 
tributed to  Lucas  van  Leyden,  and  certainly  in  his 
style,  there  is  that  same  mingling  of  the  monstrous 
and  the  ridiculous.  Lucas  van  Leyden  is  considered 
as  rather  the  patriarch  of  the  Dutch  school.  He 
was  a  friend  of  Diirer,  and  a  notable  man  of  his 
time.  His  works  are  rare,  but  later  criticism  is 
gradually   restoring  this   example  to  him. 

The  compositions  of  Hendrik  van  Balen  make  a 
good  show,  being  six  small  mythological  subjects 
hanging  in  the  Room  P.  Van  Balen  is  to  be  re- 
membered as  a  teacher  of  the  noted  Van  Dyck,  of 
whom  we  shall  treat  in  the  next  chapter. 

Quaint  studies  of  animal  life  are  to  be  seen  here, 
in  the  wooded  landscape  by  Roelant  Savery,  in 
which  all  the  animals  of  Paradise  are  displayed 
according  to  the  Netherlandish  conception,  and  in 
Frans  Francken's  Creation  of  Animals,  No.  946, 
some  of  the  animals  represented  are  by  Velvet  Brue- 
ghel. It  is  a  very  entertaining  study.  All  creation, 
from  porcupines  to  parrots,  are  seen  arranged  in 
couples ;  in  the  background  flies  a  Phoenix.  Proba- 
bly the  fact  that  there  was  only  one  Phoenix  accounts 
for  his  subsequent  extinction !  The  companion  piece 
to  this  picture  is  the  Creation  of  Adam  and  Eve. 
It  is  now  generally  conceded  that  this  is  by 
Francken,  and  that  the  other,  with  the  exception  of 
Brueghel's  animals,  is  largely  the  work  of  pupils 


232     Ubc  Hrt  ot  tbe  Dresden  (3allers 

or  by  some  weaker  hand,  simply  composed  to  com- 
plete the  pair. 

There  are  several  copies  of  the  works  of  Rubens, 
the  originals  of  which  are  to  be  seen  in  other  galler- 
ies. The  Rape  of  Proserpine  having  been  burnt  in 
Blenheim,  this  copy  is  perhaps  the  best  means  of 
judging  of  the  picture. 

Numerous  works  of  Jan  Griffier  are  to  be  seen 
here;  glens,  mountains,  valleys,  in  abundance;  all 
more  or  less  interesting  if  one  has  time  to  examine 
them  in  detail,  but  demanding  some  close  attention 
if  they  are  to  be  appreciated.  Jan  Griffier  was  born 
in  Amsterdam,  but  worked  in  London  also,  where 
he  died  in  1718.  He  began  as  a  carpenter,  but 
was  restless  in  this  trade,  and,  through  striking  up 
an  intimacy  with  a  boy  who  worked  at  decorating 
pottery,  he  gradually  discovered  his  true  calling. 
Then  he  became  assistant  to  a  tile  painter,  graduat- 
ing shortly  after  into  the  studio  of  a  flower  painter. 
Van  de  Velde,  Ruysdael,  and  even  Rembrandt  be- 
came interested  in  him,  and  he  received  some  desul- 
tory instruction  from  each.  Their  protege  left  the 
Netherlands  to  work  in  England  soon  after  the  Fire 
of  London;  he  married  and  settled  in  that  city. 
He  amassed  quite  a  fortune,  was  known  as  the 
Gentleman  of  Utrecht,  and,  when  he  made  a  visit 
to  his  native  Holland  again,  he  sailed  in  his  own 
yacht    to    Rotterdam!      After    being   twice    ship- 


IRetbetlanMsb  an^  (Berman  Hrtfsts  233 

wrecked,  he  gave  up  the  luxury  of  this  aquatic  es- 
tabHshment,  and  returned  to  London,  where  he 
ended  his  days,  Hving  to  be  seventy-two  years  old. 

Two  attractive  genre  pictures  by  Vinck  Boons 
may  be  seen  in  P  and  O.  An  excusable  divergence 
of  opinion  exists  as  to  the  spelling  of  this  artist's 
name;  whether  Vinck  Boons  or  Vinck  Booms  is 
chosen,  in  either  case  it  suggests  the  note  of  a  bass 
drum!     His  pictures  are  pretty  and  rustic. 

Hans  Jordaens's  grotesque  composition,  men, 
women,  and  an  ape  at  a  meal,  is  worthy  of  notice. 
It  is  in  one  of  the  smaller  divisions  or  carrels  in 
Room  P. 

The  Head  of  Medusa,  by  Victor  Wolfvoet,  is  too 
violently  terrible  and  realistic.  The  little  drops  of 
oozing  blood  are  only  repulsive  and  detract  from  the 
classic  interest  which  one  would  otherwise  feel  in 
the  microscopic  finish. 

The  four  men  at  table  in  an  Inn,  which  was  once 
considered  an  original  Brouwer,  is  now  relegated 
to  the  class  of  copyist's  work,  while  No.  1063, 
Peasants  smoking  in  a  Room,  is  also  from  a  draw- 
ing in   Vienna  by  Brouwer. 

"  In  the  Witches'  Kitchen,"  after  David  Teniers, 
is  rather  an  effort  at  wit;  you  feel  that  the  humour 
is  forced;  and  the  Old  j\Ian  embracing  a  Girl  in  a 
Cow  Shed  is  as  sordid  as  it  sounds.  There  is  some 
reason,   however,   to   believe   that    1085  B,   which 


234     Ube  Hrt  ot  the  2)res&en  (3alleri? 

has  long  been  regarded  as  a  studio  piece,  Two  Men 
Playing  on  Lute  and  Flute,  may  be  an  original 
Teniers. 

A  master  of  the  transition  from  the  Flemish  to 
the  Dutch  school  is  here  represented  —  Alexander 
Kerrincx,  who  lived  from  1600  to  1652.  In  the 
eighth  carrel  three  of  his  studies  may  be  seen. 

The  head  of  a  man  in  a  small  black  hat,  after 
Frans  Hals,  is  worth  examining.  The  original  is 
in  a  private  collection  in  Paris,  but  even  the  copy 
is  firm,  crisp,  and  delicate. 

Some  rather  gruesome  and  warlike  scenes,  with 
names  almost  amusing  in  their  ferocity,  —  such  as 
Cavalry  Fight  with  some  Men  hanging  on  Trees 
in  the  Middle  Distance,  —  are  by  a  Dutch  painter, 
Jan  van  Hughtenburgh  of  Haarlem.  Another 
bluntly  described  bit  of  realism.  Landscape  with 
Gallows,  is  by  Jan  Looten  of  Amsterdam.  Thor- 
oughly Dutch,  too,  are  the  Fiddler  and  a  Girl  Danc- 
ing and  a  Girl  Sitting  on  a  Man's  Knees,  by  Gerrit 
Lunders, 

In  the  fifth  carrel,  too,  is  a  Gerard  Dou,  which  has 
recently  been  credited  again  to  its  author,  the  Boy 
and  Girl  with  a  Mouse-trap.  It  was  probably  placed 
among  the  copies  simply  because  it  was  defaced, 
and  not  easy  to  determine.  The  cheerful  little  pair 
of  Winter  scenes,  —  Sports  on  the  Ice,  —  by  Avers- 
camp,  are  in  the  fifth  carrel. 


metberlanMsb  anb  German  Hrtists  235 

A  few  of  the  seventeenth-century  Germans  are 
here  as  well ;  and,  though  it  is  rather  out  of  chrono- 
logical sequence  to  consider  them  at  this  point,  it  is 
better  than  to  retrace  one's  steps  down  this  wing 
in  order  to  examine  them  in  precisely  the  correct 
order,  especially  as,  to  any  but  careful  students,  such 
a  proceeding  would  have  no  advantage  at  all.  There 
is  quite  a  collection  of  the  works  of  the  Germans  of 
this  time  who,  tired  of  their  own  native  turn  of 
thought,  being  more  given  to  repose  and  realism 
than  to  energy  and  flights  of  fancy,  addressed  them- 
selves to  a  consideration  of  the  Venetian  methods. 
These  men,  roughly  speaking,  were  Hendrik  von 
Balen,  Christopher  Schwartz,  Johann  Rottenham- 
mer,  Heinrich  Schoenfeldt,  Joseph  Eismann.  Some 
who  also  developed  their  art  by  studies  in  Rome 
were  Philipp  Peter  Roos,  Franz  Tamm  (called 
Dapper),  and  others  with  whom  we  have  nothing 
to  do  in  pursuing  our  course  through  the  Dresden 
gallery. 

Karl  Skreta  was  an  artist  of  Prague,  where  his 
works  may  be  seen  to  best  advantage.  He  came 
under  the  Italian  influence,  and  It  greatly  affected 
his  style.  He  intentionally  based  his  principles  on 
those  of  the  Eclectics.  He  is  represented  here  by  a 
large  number  of  Saints  and  Evangelists. 

The  Repose  on  the  Flight  into  Eg}^pt  is  by  Johann 
Rottenhammer,  who,  though  born  in  Munich,  was 


236     Ubc  Brt  ot  tbe  BresDen  (Bailer^ 

a  disciple  of  Tintoretto;  the  Emperor  Rudolph  II, 
was  his  patron  for  a  time,  but  he  finally  died  in 
great  want  in  Augsburg.  He  sometimes  collabo- 
rated with  Velvet  Brueghel. 

The  prolific  family  of  Roos  may  be  observed : 
Johann  Heinrich  Roos,  the  father,  and  Johann  Mel- 
chior  Roos,  his  son,  also  the  more  celebrated  son 
and  pupil,  Philipp  Peter  Roos,  known  as  Rosa  di 
Tivoli.  Jan  Heinrich  Roos  was  primarily  a  cattle 
painter.  He  often  chose  such  scenes  as  market- 
places, displaying  his  animals  in  more  varied  sur- 
roundings, in  this  way,  than  in  pastures  only.  Rosa 
di  Tivoli  painted  chiefly  shepherds  and  flocks  in 
landscape  surroundings.  He  was  a  son  of  Heinrich 
Roos ;  having  lived  at  Tivoli  for  some  time,  he  was 
called  by  that  name  to  distinguish  him  from  the 
rest  of  his  family.  Philipp  often  painted  very  large 
compositions  with  a  broad,  bold  stroke,  quite  unlike 
the  general  German  painter  of  his  period.  The  tal- 
ents of  the  Roos  family  are  characteristically  dis- 
played in  rather  tiresome  studies  of  sheep,  relieved 
by  one  stag  picture,  by  Melchior. 

Michael  Mirevelt  of  Delft  has  some  pleasing  por- 
traits here.  He  began  by  painting  altar-pieces,  but 
afterward  developed  into  a  painter  of  likenesses. 
The  finest  is  his  Old  Gentleman  leaning  on  a  stick, 
No.  1 318,  and  one  of  the  clearest  bits  of  detail  is 


IRetberlanMsb  auD  German  Hrtists  237 

in  No.  1 32 1,  in  which  the  lace  is  rendered  with  ad- 
mirable faithfulness. 

Proceeding  now  in  Room  L,  we  find  a  Death  of 
the  Virgin,  No.  674,  which  is  hardly  likely  to  be  by 
the  Spanish  painter,  Juan  de  Juanes,  but  it  is  prob- 
ably from  his  studio. 

A  beautiful  rendering  of  a  smile  is  to  be  noted 
in  the  face  of  the  girl  in  Caesar  van  Everdingen's 
picture  of  Bacchus  and  two  Nymphs.  The  pretty 
face,  looking  so  coyly  over  her  raised  shoulder,  is 
the  whole  picture.  All  else  is  accessory  —  even  the 
charming  child  who  poses  as  Cupid  holding  a  jug 
and  glass,  and  the  satisfied  Bacchus  himself,  are 
secondary. 

Here,  and  in  the  next  room,  may  be  seen  a  couple 
of  striking  portraits  by  a  little-known  painter,  one 
of  the  minor  pupils  of  Rembrandt,  Christopher 
Paudiss,  who  was  a  native  of  Lower  Saxony,  in  the 
seventeenth  century.  The  one  in  this  room  is  a 
portrait  of  an  Old  Man  in  a  Fur  Cap;  it  has  a 
smoky  bloom,  and  is  cool  and  mellow.  It  is  almost 
a  monochrome,  with  hardly  any  colour  about  it. 
In  Room  M  one  should  notice  Paudiss's  picture  of 
a  Hungarian  servant  in  a  high  cap;  the  head  is 
massive  —  rather  more  than  life  size;  it  is  a  har- 
mony in  soft  browns.  These  two  pictures  attract 
the  eye  at  once,  by  their  general  excellence,  although 


238     Zbc  Brt  ot  tbe  Bresben  Gallery? 

there  is  little  that  is  remarkable  about  the  subjects 
themselves. 

Aelbert  Cuyp  was  a  great  painter  in  his  way. 
Eugene  Fromentin  says,  "  a  true,  fine  Cuyp  is  a 
painting  at  once  subtile  and  gross,  tender  and  robust, 
aerial  and  massive."  At  the  same  time  his  name 
is  not  associated  with  any  innovation;  he  was  not 
original,  nor  very  imaginative,  or  especially  creative. 
In  other  words,  he  was  a  very  able  painter.  He 
used  the  materials  at  hand  with  skill  and  wisdom, 
but  he  did  not  add  to  them.  There  are  two  exam- 
ples of  his  work  here.  One,  however,  the  Boy  with 
a  Greyhound,  is  not  quite  certainly  by  his  hand, 
while  the  other,  a  large  landscape  in  which  a  white 
horse  is  held  by  a  groom,  is  now  restored  to  the 
master,  having  for  some  time  been  regarded  as 
doubtful.  Copies  of  two  other  pictures  by  Cuyp 
hang  in  this  room  also. 

One  of  Rembrandt's  pupils  has  done  an  interest- 
ing thing  in  working  out  from  one  of  the  master's 
etchings  a  large  oil-painting  of  Christ  Presented 
to  the  People.  The  composition  is  not  satisfactory 
on  this  scale,  and  the  main  figures  look  like  actors 
on  a  stage. 

The  bust  of  the  Emperor  Vitellius,  wreathed  with 
bay  leaves,  low  on  his  brow,  comes  perilously  near 
to  being  a  caricature.  The  Emperor  is  fat,  but 
not  well-liking;   he  is  painfully  chuckle-necked,  and 


IRetberlanDisb  anD  (5erman  Hrtists  239 

seems  to  have  lost  all  his  teeth,  judging  by  the 
tightly  closed  mouth  and  short  chin.  This  portrait 
is  by  Frans  de  Vriendt,  or  Floris,  who  was  born  in 
Antwerp,  but  studied  Michelangelo  and  the  antique 
in  Rome,  and  upon  his  return  was  inappropriately 
called  the  Raphael  of  Flanders !  By  glancing  at  his 
other  pictures  one  may  see  how  much  claim  he  had 
to  such  a  title.  His  Adoration  of  the  Shepherds 
hangs  in  L,  —  and  his  painting  of  Lot  and  his 
Daughters  in  P.  Floris  was  a  bombastic  and  vain 
person,  and  he  degenerated  under  the  misplaced 
adulation  which  he  received. 

There  are  a  few  Rubens  here,  which  must  be 
observed.  Among  those  not  so  far  transferred  to 
Van  Dyck  (as  is  the  fate  of  the  majority  of  por- 
traits formerly  attributed  to  Rubens)  is  the  lovely 
fair  woman  with  her  hair  braided  and  laid  around 
on  the  back  of  her  head.  It  is  altogether  the  work 
of  Rubens  himself,  and  is  singularly  refined  and 
beautiful.  The  lady  might  be  a  descendant  of 
Titian's  Bella. 

The  Portrait  of  an  old  Bishop  is  dated  1634.  It 
is  beautifully  illusive  in  treatment,  the  paint  seeming 
still  liquid,  and  the  touch  so  soft  as  to  be  almost 
hazy.  It  is  possible  that  the  signature  is  a  forgery. 
But  there  is  a  smoky,  misty  halo  of  white  hair  about 
the  venerable  face,  that  the  master  might  well  be 
proud  to  have  painted. 


240     Ube  Brt  ot  tbe  DresDen  Gallery 

The  Garden  of  Love  is  a  sort  of  Flemish  Fete 
Galante,  —  Dutch  beauties  and  cavaliers  foreshadow 
the  more  coquettish  types  of  Watteau.  The  orig- 
inal is  in  the  Rothschild  collection,  and  there  is  a 
very  similar  one  in  Madrid.  This  is  a  copy,  but 
a  faithful  one,  and  the  picture  is  full  of  typical 
features.  Helena  Fourment  repeated  several  times 
is  its  chief  theme.  Attended  by  various  lovers,  she 
is  seen  embracing  one,  listening  to  sweet  words 
from  another,  and  in  different  stages  of  flirtation 
with  others.  Little  Cupids  disport  themselves  in  a 
fountain,  and  there  is  a  portico  in  the  background, 
which  combines  all  the  most  objectionable  features 
of  the  decadent  Renaissance.  Still  the  effect  is 
dressy  and  gay.  There  is  little  thought  bestowed 
upon  it,  and  yet  it  is  full  of  charm  and  grace.  The 
original  is  one  of  Rubens's  best  late  works.  It 
was  kept  in  his  own  possession  until  his  death,  when 
his  wife  bought  it.  Afterward  Philip  IV.  purchased 
it,  and  it  hung  in  the  Royal  bedchamber.  It  is  a 
confection  of  colour;  pinks,  greens,  violets,  and 
yellows  blend  in  delightful  harmonies.  This  Gar- 
den of  Love  is  very  like  the  conceptions  of  Wat- 
teau :  Rubens  seldom  fell  into  this  mood,  but  it  is 
one  in  which  he  is  very  pleasing.  His  decorative 
pastorals  of  this  description  probably  stimulated 
Watteau,  who  may  be  said  to  have  dramatized  such 


IFletberlanMsb  an&  German  Hrtists  241 

pictures,  turning  them  into  theatrical  tableaux  in- 
stead of  possible  scenes. 

The  Young  Man  Dressed  in  Black,  by  Bartholo- 
maus  van  der  Heist,  is  a  most  attractive  and  strik- 
ing portrait.  The  face  is  full  of  expression,  and  his 
pose,  looking  over  his  shoulder,  is  fascinating,  al- 
though the  face  has  more  intelligence  than  beauty. 
It  is  effectively  lighted.  Van  der  Heist  was  a 
painter  in  Haarlem  and  Amsterdam,  living  from 
161 3  to  1670.  Sir  Joshua  Reynolds  thought  very 
highly  of  his  work. 

The  Young  Woman  in  a  straw  hat  and  the 
Young  Man  who  wears  a  wreath  are  by  Salomon 
de  Bray,  a  painter  of  Haarlem  in  the  first  half  of 
the  seventeenth  century.  They  are  well  painted, 
with  good  lights  and  shadows. 

Van  Dyck's  figures  of  the  Apostles,  Simon,  Peter, 
Paul,  and  Bartholomew,  should  be  noticed.  They 
were  only  recently  given  to  Van  Dyck.  The  Old 
Gentleman  and  Old  Lady  by  Van  Dyck  are  also 
excellent,  as  is  the  portrait  of  the  venerable  Thomas 
Parr  at  the  age  of  one  hundred  and  fifty  years.  The 
so-called  Van  Dyck's  Danae  is  in  the  room  M. 
Lying  on  her  couch,  she  is  reaching  up,  with  ecstatic 
gesture  but  with  imperturbable  facial  expression,  to 
the  shower  of  gold  which  is  descending.  The  at- 
tendant looks  a  good  deal  more  excited  over  the 
curious  manifestation  than  does  her  mistress.      It 


242     TLbc  Hrt  ot  the  2)res&en  (Bailer^ 

is  probably  not  by  Van  Dyck,  but  by  some  later 
artist. 

One  should  proceed  now  through  N,  in  order  to 
look  at  the  later  Flemish  painters  in  the  cabinets 
1 8,  19,  and  20,  before  commencing  a  study  of 
Rubens,  Van  Dyck,  and  Rembrandt,  and  the  Dutch 
school.  We  approach  these  rooms  in  the  opposite 
order,  beginning  in  No.  20.  Here  we  make  ac- 
quaintance with  the  famous  Brueghel  family. 

Jan  Brueghel  was  one  of  those  three  artists  of 
the  same  surname;  to  distinguish  them,  they  are 
colloquially  spoken  of  as  Peasant  Brueghel,  Velvet 
Brueghel,  and  Hell  Brueghel.  Peasant  Brueghel  is 
that  old  Peter  Brueghel,  whom  we  have  had  occa- 
sion to  observe  in  connection  with  his  works  hung 
in  Room  P.  Jan  Brueghel,  his  son,  is  known  as 
Velvet  Brueghel,  while  Peter's  other  son  won  the 
euphonious  pseudonym  of  Hell  Brueghel  on  account 
of  the  free  and  satanic  style  of  his  compositions. 

Velvet  Brueghel  was  a  clever  delineator  of  small 
landscape  subjects,  and  also  a  brilliant  painter  of 
flowers.  His  finish  was  very  elegant,  and  his  touch 
crisp  and  smart.  There  is  an  unfortunate  tradition 
that  Brueghel  earned  his  nickname  because  he 
always  dressed  in  velvet;  but  the  name  is  really  a 
corruption  of  Brueghel  de  Vlours,  —  meaning  flow- 
ers, —  which,  written  velours,  was  afterward  misin- 
terpreted.   In  the  nineteenth,  twentieth,  and  twenty- 


IRetberlanMsb  an^  German  Hrtists  243 

first  cabinets  are  distributed  various  works  by  Velvet 
Brueghel,  chiefly  landscapes  with  small  figures.  One 
of  the  pictures  now  given  to  Velvet  Brueghel  was 
originally  attributed  to  his  brother;  it  is  the  small 
Temptation  of  St.  Anthony,  on  copper,  No.  878. 
The  mistake  in  identity  is  excusable,  for  it  is  quite 
a  characteristic  little  Hell,  like  most  Flemish  and 
Dutch  treatments  of  the  subject.  Among  the  other 
numerous  works  here  by  Velvet  Brueghel,  No.  896, 
a  landing-place  with  a  village  church,  stands  out. 
The  greens  are  transparent,  and  the  water  remark- 
ably liquid.  There  is  an  intimate  charm  about  the 
picture,  A  Ford  across  a  Stream,  No.  895.  The 
covered  wagon,  the  rustics,  apparently  moving  their 
belongings  to  a  new  home,  are  the  spot  of  fore- 
ground interest,  while  the  beautiful  rolling  country 
reaching  away  in  the  background  is  pastoral  and 
romantic  in  the  extreme.  On  an  eminence  at  the 
right  is  seen  a  gibbet,  but  there  is  no  criminal  hang- 
ing from  it ;  on  the  opposite  side  of  the  composition 
is  a  delightful  little  fairy  wood,  into  which  it  seems 
that  one  might  penetrate  by  the  little  path,  and  enjoy 
the  cool,  quiet  shade  relieved  by  pale  sunlight. 

There  are  no  examples  of  Hell  Brueghel  in  Dres- 
den. Jan  Brueghel  the  younger,  a  son  of  Velvet 
Brueghel,  may  be  seen  in  a  few  small  landscapes. 
No.  918,  Lot  and  his  Daughters,  used  to  be  attrib- 


244     Ube  Bvt  ot  tbe  H)resDen  6aller^ 

uted  to  Hell  Bnieghel,  but  is  now  catalogued  as  a 
work  in  the  style  of  Peter  Schoubroeck. 

In  the  twentieth  cabinet  is  an  excellent  little  copy 
of  Rubens's  Judgment  of  Paris,  with  many  touches 
from  the  master's  hand.  The  Archduke  Ferdi- 
nand wrote  of  this :  "I  have  only  one  fault  to  find 
with  it  .  .  .  the  excessive  nudity  of  the  three  god- 
desses .  .  .  the  Venus  who  occupies  the  central 
place  is  a  very  good  likeness  of  the  painter's  wife,  — 
the  most  beautiful  of  all  the  ladies  of  Antwerp." 

In  the  nineteenth  cabinet  one  is  struck  with  the 
soft,  rich  colour  and  smoky  outlines  of  the  peasant 
subjects  by  Brouwer.  The  brawling  youths,  fight- 
ing in  a  purely  animal  way  over  their  cards  and  dice, 
are  most  coarse  and  brutal,  and  yet  they  swim  in 
so  beautiful  a  haze  of  tone  that  one  quite  overlooks 
the  meaning  of  the  picture  in  admiration  for  its 
texture.  Adriaen  Brouwer  was  born  near  Haar- 
lem, about  1605.  His  mother  was  a  maker  of  the 
local  costumes  (for  a  peasantry  does  not  go  to  a 
dressmaker,  but  rather  to  a  constructor  of  its  own 
special  uniforms),  and  the  little  Adriaen  was  early 
put  to  work  to  assist  her  in  designing  floral  pat- 
terns with  which  she  decorated  these  clothes.  It 
chanced  that  the  great  painter,  Frans  Hals,  saw 
him  at  work,  took  an  interest  in  him,  and  offered  to 
take  him  and  bring  him  up  as  an  artist.  The  mother 
agreed,  and  the  boy  went  willingly  to  live  with  his 


IRetberlanMsb  auD  (Berman  Hrtists  245 

voluntary  instructor.  But  his  path  was  not  strewn 
with  roses.  There  can  be  no  doubt  that  Hals  was 
far  from  a  pleasant  man  to  get  along  with ;  he  was 
a  harsh  master;  besides  this,  he  taught  the  boy  to 
portray  amusing  scenes  of  low  life,  which  he  sold 
for  drink  and  luxuries  for  himself,  instead  of  allow- 
ing Adriaen  to  earn  what  he  could  with  his  own 
work.  Adriaen  van  Ostade  was  a  pupil  of  Hals  at 
the  same  time,  but  he  was  paying  for  his  tuition, 
and  was  therefore  better  treated;  he,  and  some  of 
the  other  pupils,  were  indignant  at  the  way  Brouwer 
was  abused,  and  they  helped  him  to  escape.  He 
hid  under  the  organ  in  the  Cathedral  in  Haarlem 
until  he  was  discovered,  and  persuaded  to  return 
to  Hals.  Conditions  did  not  improve  after  this, 
and  he  again  took  himself  off;  this  time  he  stayed. 
But  he  was  already  demoralized,  and  spent  all  the 
money  he  could  earn  in  drink  and  gambling.  Such 
scenes  as  he  depicted  were  in  his  daily  experience. 
He  had  a  brief  and  boisterous  success,  such  as  his 
art  would  appear  to  warrant.  He  got  into  prison, 
and  although  both  Rubens  and  Rembrandt  were 
willing  to  befriend  him,  on  account  of  his  real 
genius,  he  had  so  far  deteriorated  that  his  life  has 
to  be  chronicled  as  unworthy,  and  his  art  an  unex- 
plainable  flower  of  rare  and  exotic  quality. 

David    Ryckaert's    Peasant   Family,    illustrating 
the  old  proverb,  "  As  the  old  birds  sang,  the  young 


246      Zhc  Brt  of  tbe  S)re8&en  Gallery 

ones  will  pipe,"  is  an  amusing-  bit  of  rustic  group- 
ing, but  very  inferior  to  the  same  theme  as  treated 
by  Jordaens,  The  children  on  the  left,  imitating 
their  elders  in  drinking,  are  absurdly  out  of  draw- 
ing: little  stunted  beings,  without  a  trait  of  real 
childhood  about  them.  Ryckaert  was  a  copyist  of 
Teniers,  The  same  faults  are  seen  in  the  picture 
of  still  life  by  this  artist,  which  hangs  across  in 
the  fiftieth  cabinet,  in  which  occurs  a  figure  of  a 
small  boy  whipping  a  top.  He  is  ridiculously  small 
in  scale  compared  with  the  other  figures.  There 
is  something  attractively  quaint  about  this  little  boy, 
however.  Ryckaert  was  a  pupil  of  his  father,  an 
indifferent  artist  of  the  same  name. 

The  rather  brigand-like  compositions  of  Peter 
Snayers  are  not  very  interesting.  Robbers  and  ban- 
ditti, wars  and  rumours  of  wars,  in  scenery  com- 
posed for  the  purpose,  like  a  stage  setting  for 
William  Tell,  are  the  chief  component  parts. 

Cavalry  skirmishes  by  various  other  unimportant 
Flemish  painters  may  be  seen,  and  some  landscapes, 
occasionally  attractive,  by  Lukas  van  Uden. 

In  the  twentieth  cabinet  hang  numerous  examples 
of  the  work  of  Peter  Geysels,  an  Antwerp  disciple 
of  Jan  Brueghel.  Hendrik  Steenwyck  the  younger, 
who  painted  largely  in  Antwerp,  but  who  removed 
to  England,  dying  in  London  about  1649,  's  the 
painter  of  three  good  architectural  views  of  Gothic 


IKletberlanDisb  anC)  German  Hrtists  247 

churches.  Steenwyck  and  some  of  his  compatriots 
turned  their  talents  in  the  direction  of  their  own 
Northern  architecture,  stimulated  to  the  effort  by 
the  fact  that  nearly  all  architectural  painting  had 
been  based  upon  classic  models,  and  as  a  reaction 
against  the  inevitable  Roman  Ruins,  they  produced 
some  really  good  examples  of  Gothic  styles.  There 
are  also  two  quaint  paintings  of  halls,  with  Charles 
I.  and  Queen  Henrietta  Maria  standing,  one  in 
each,  in  a  conventional  manner.  Both  of  these 
halls  are  portrayed  chiefly  for  the  purpose  of  draw- 
ing pleasant  arched  vistas  into  porticoes  beyond. 
They  are  a  quaint  pair  of  pictures,  and  have  con- 
siderable interest.  They  may  be  the  ones  mentioned 
in  the  catalogue  of  Charles  I.,  as  "  perspective  by 
Steenwyck,  with  the  King  and  Queen  in  little  by 
Belcamp."  Sir  Horace  Walpole  alludes  to  a  "  little 
book  of  perspectives  by  Steenwyck,"  which  sold 
among  the  King's  belongings  for  two  pounds  ten 
shillings. 

No.  1 1 15  represents  the  entry  of  Louis  XIV.  into 
Arras,  and  is  by  van  der  Meulen,  This  artist, 
although  a  native  of  Brussels,  may  be  almost  re- 
garded as  a  Frenchman,  so  long  did  he  work  for 
Louis  XIV.  The  action  is  spirited,  and  the  render- 
ing clear  and  crisp.  Van  der  IMeulen  died  in  Paris 
in  1690. 

The  Antwerp  flower  painters  and  still-life  artists 


248     XTbe  Hrt  of  tbe  S)re3&en  (Ballery 

are  well  displayed  here.  To  persons  who  feel  an 
interest  in  this  very  exact  branch  of  art,  the  nine- 
teenth and  twentieth  cabinets  will  be  especially  fer- 
tile in  suggestion. 

The  painstaking  Daniel  Seghers  may  be  studied 
at  his  best.  Seghers  was  a  pupil  of  Velvet  Brue- 
ghel, but  he  soon  afterward  became  a  Jesuit  father. 
In  his  cell  he  made  it  his  delight  to  cultivate  flowers 
and  plants,  from  which  he  painted  most  accurate 
portraits,  placing  the  cut  flowers  in  a  glass,  and 
treating  them  thus,  in  simple  environment.  Two  of 
these  studies,  Nos.  1201  and  1202,  are  signed,  "  D. 
Soc.  Jesu,"  instead  of  with  his  full  name.  He 
visited  Italy  chiefly  for  the  purpose  of  drawing  all 
the  native  flowers,  and  returned  to  Antwerp  laden 
with  beautiful  sketches.  He  lived  in  Antwerp  from 
1590  to  1661. 

Cornelius  de  Heem  was  a  Utrecht  painter  of 
still  life  and  flowers;  his  detail  is  delicate,  but  his 
work  is  not  up  to  the  standard  of  that  of  his  father, 
John  David  de  Heem.  Nevertheless,  for  those  who 
admire  groups  of  goblets,  lemons,  grapes,  and 
oysters,  the  cleverly  executed  No.  1225  will  no 
doubt  prove  gratifying. 

Many  others  are  here :  Jan  van  Kessel,  Ottmar 
Elliger,  and  Nicholas  van  Verendael,  whose  amus- 
ing burlesque  in  red  and  sharp  yellow,  Monkeys 
Regaling  Themselves,  is  especially  good.     It  is  a 


1Fletberlan&fsb  anb  German  Hrtists  249 

satire  upon  the  groups  of  feasting  peasants  which 
were  so  much  in  vogue  at  the  time,  and  is  a  well- 
composed  caricature.  The  figures  are  all  apes,  but 
are  dressed  in  the  festal  garb  of  Flemish  merry- 
makers. One  monkey  with  his  back  to  the  spectator 
is  telling  a  story,  gesticulating  with  one  hand  while 
he  holds  a  teapot  or  wine- jug  in  the  other,  in  such 
a  way  that  it  is  pouring  its  contents  on  the  floor. 
Two  female  apes  have  small  infant  monkeys  in 
arms,  who  reach  eagerly  for  the  cake  in  the  centre 
of  the  table.  In  a  corner  two  young  apes  are  seen 
exchanging  a  kiss,  and  in  the  foreground  a  trio  of 
bearded  n.iffians  have  got  hold  of  a  dish  of  pan- 
cakes which  they  are  eagerly  devouring. 

David  Teniers  the  younger  was  also  a  painter  of 
the  rustic  manners  of  the  peasant  class,  but  he  was 
seldom  as  coarse  as  Brouwer,  and  sometimes  posi- 
tively refined  and  delightful.  Perhaps  his  people 
are  a  shade  less  ugly  than  those  of  Brouwer  and 
Ostade,  certainly  his  genius  is  versatile,  and  his 
command  of  subjects  enormous.  There  is  often  in 
his  simple  rural  characters  a  dignity  like  that  of  the 
figures  of  Jan  Steen ;  to  this  ability  to  paint  genre 
he  added  a  talent  for  landscape.  He  was  called  in 
his  day  the  "  Proteus  of  Painting."  In  Dresden 
we  can  judge  well  of  his  numerous  phases,  for  he  is 
splendidly  represented  in  this  gallery.  His  earliest 
pictures  are  Smokers  in  the  Village  Inn,  No.  1066 


2SO     Zbc  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresden  (3alleri? 

(I  will  give  the  numbers  to  distinguish  these  pic- 
tures, as  so  many  of  them  have  similarity  at  first 
glance),  and  the  two  landscapes,  one  moonlight, 
with  shepherds  around  a  fire.  No.  1064,  the  other 
a  river  view  with  shepherds  and  flocks  resting. 
Both  of  these  last  were  originally  ascribed  to  the 
elder  Teniers,  as  were  also  several  other  of  the  land- 
scape subjects,  among  them  the  Bleaching  Ground, 
No.  1067,  and  the  Inn  by  a  Riverside,  before  a 
Town,  No.  1068. 

David  Teniers  was  born  in  Antwerp  in  16 10,  and 
was  first  instructed  by  his  father,  which  accounts 
for  the  number  of  his  early  pictures  which  have  been 
given  to  David  Teniers  the  elder.  Some  authori- 
ties affirm  that  he  studied  with  Rubens,  and  some 
that  he  was  a  pupil  of  Brouwer ;  but  both  of  these 
statements  are  without  much  historical  foundation. 
He  was  quick  and  versatile,  which  two  qualities 
made  him  the  prolific  painter  which  he  afterward 
became.  The  subsequent  events  of  his  life  may  be 
briefly  rehearsed.  He  became  a  member  of  the 
Guild  of  Antwerp  about  1623.  He  was  married  to 
Anne,  daughter  of  Velvet  Brueghel,  in  1637,  and 
became  the  father  of  seven  children.  By  a  second 
marriage  he  added  four  more  to  the  record  of  his 
offspring.  He  was  Dean  of  the  Guild  of  St.  Luke  in 
1644,  and  was  among  those  interested  in  the  building 
of  the  Academy  of  Fine  Arts  in  1663.    He  became 


IRetberlanMsb  an&  German  Hrtfsts  251 

Court  painter  to  Archduke  Leopold  William,  the 
Governor  of  the  Spanish  Netherlands,  of  whose 
picture-gallery  he  was  also  appointed  inspector. 
When  Don  Juan  of  Austria  succeeded  Leopold,  he 
confirmed  these  appointments,  and  Teniers  became 
wealthy  and  popular,  residing  in  a  splendid  castle, 
known  as  the  Three  Towers,  the  Chateau  of  Perck, 
of  which  a  view  is  to  be  seen  painted  by  him  in 
the  London  National  Gallery.  Art  connoisseurs 
and  members  of  the  nobility  were  among  his  guests 
at  his  lordly  mansion.  Among  his  royal  patrons 
were  Philip  IV.  of  Spain  and  Queen  Christina  of 
Sweden. 

Teniers's  works  after  1640  were  far  finer  than 
his  earlier  ones,  as  is  but  natural ;  experience  and 
practice  developing  his  power  every  season  into 
greater  ripeness.  To  look  about  in  the  nineteenth 
and  twentieth  cabinets  among  his  pictures  is  an 
education.  One  of  the  most  delightful  is  his  Com- 
pany of  Smokers,  No.  1071.  There  is  no  vulgarity 
in  this  beautiful  work,  yet  it  is  entirely  natural  and 
merry.  Greuze  used  to  say,  "  Show  me  a  pipe,  and 
I  will  tell  you  if  the  smoker  is  by  Teniers."  His 
smoking  scenes  are  considered  particularly  charac- 
teristic. 

Teniers  is  seldom  seen  to  better  advantage  than 
in  the  Deliverance  of  St.  Peter  from  Prison;  as 
a    religious    picture   this    is    absolutely   absurd,    of 


252     Ube  Brt  of  tbe  3)re0&en  6alleri? 

course;  but  as  a  study  of  soldiers  at  play  it  is  most 
attractive.  The  light  and  shade  on  the  glittering 
armour  and  on  the  rugged  yet  graceful  forms  are 
exquisite.  The  little  vista  beyond  into  the  cell  in 
which  St.  Peter  is  seen,  guided  by  the  angel,  is 
charming,  and  a  foretaste  of  De  Hooch.  Another 
fine  study  of  grouping  similar  to  the  others  is  his 
Peasants  Chalking  Up  the  Score,  seated  about  an 
Inn  table,  No.  1073.  ^  beautiful  clear  picture  of 
armour  is  seen  in  his  Page  in  a  Guard-room,  No. 
1078,  back  in  the  eighteenth  cabinet.  Some  of 
Teniers's  smaller  and  less  finished  pictures  are 
known  as  "  after-dinner  pieces,"  because  they  were 
begun  and  completed  during  an  afternoon.  Consid- 
ering his  marvellous  attention  to  detail,  Teniers 
worked  rapidly. 

In  his  youth  and  in  his  age  Teniers's  art  was 
not  so  satisfying  as  during  his  middle  period.  It 
has  been  said  that  his  career,  like  the  fishes  that  he 
so  often  painted,  was  better  in  the  middle  than  at 
either  end ! 

The  Alchemist,  No.  1072,  is  especially  fine  in 
detail.  It  is  an  interesting  study  into  the  lore  and 
superstition  which  were  so  strangely  combined  in 
old  times.  Here  we  see  the  philosopher  at  work, 
with  his  bellows,  surrounded  by  his  tools,  pestles 
and  mortars,  retorts,  bottles,  and  jars;  the  still 
life  is  admirable,  and  the  opportunity  of  the  subject 


IRetberlanMsb  an5  (Berman  Hrtists  253 

almost  unlimited.  The  structure  of  the  furnace  at 
which  the  alchemist  is  working  is  like  that  of  the 
kitchen  ovens  in  many  old.  Dutch  and  German 
houses  that  are  still  shown. 

Twice  in  the  Dresden  gallery  St.  Anthony  is 
seen  "  catching  it,"  —  once  in  a  spacious  cave,  and 
once  in  an  old  ruin.  In  both  he  is  surrounded  by 
the  absurd  little  grotesques  by  which  the  Teutons 
have  so  often  represented  temptations :  frogs,  sit- 
ting on  their  ridiculous  hind  legs  and  holding  up 
their  hands  in  some  sort  of  incantation  or  expostu- 
lation ;  silly  long-nosed  pipers  and  a  vortex  of  bats. 
In  No.  1079  a  pretty  woman  neatly  clad  in  Puri- 
tanic style  holds  out  a  cup  of  wine  in  a  disinterested 
way  to  the  saint  who  is  so  beset. 

No.  1075  is  a  portrait  of  the  master  himself  seated 
by  a  cask.  It  is  interesting  to  know  that  this  is 
David  Teniers's  own  impression  of  himself  in  1646, 
which  is  the  date  of  the  painting. 

There  are  three  of  Teniers's  famous  Village 
Fetes  in  Dresden :  the  larger  ones,  with  couples 
dancing,  hang  in  the  nineteenth  and  twentieth  cab- 
inets, while  the  Village  Feast  at  the  Half  Moon  Inn 
is  in  No.  18.  All  of  them  are  hilarious  and  full 
of  life.  The  little  figures  should  be  closely  observed. 
Here  are  some  gossips  gathered  about  a  table  for 
refreshments ;  here  are  couples  dancing  strenuously ; 
again,  lovers  have  withdrawn,  and  appear  quite  ob- 


254     Zbc  Brt  of  tbe  Dresden  6alleri? 

livious  of  surroundings.  It  is  rustic  merrymaking 
at  its  height,  and  these  three  pictures  are  justly- 
precious  and  famous. 

As  regards  David  Teniers's  methods  of  proceed- 
ing in  his  work,  we  have  testimony  from  a  biogra- 
pher to  the  effect  that  he  first  prepared  a  Hght 
ground  with  plaster  of  Paris  or  chalk,  on  which  his 
various  tints  of  gray  and  brown  were  scumbled; 
at  this  stage  he  sketched  in  figures  and  accessories 
with  bistre,  touching  in  the  main  shadows.  Half- 
tones were  then  superposed,  care  being  taken  to 
retain  great  transparency.  His  finish  was  accom- 
plished wnth  body  colour,  and  somewhat  loaded  in 
the  lights,  with  spirited  little  dashes  and  an  occa- 
sional glazing. 

Proceeding  now  to  an  examination  of  the  works 
of  Rubens  and  Van  Dyck,  we  return  to  the  hall  J, 
passing  through  K,  to  which  we  shall  return  later, 
when  we  come  to  a  consideration  of  Rembrandt 
and  the  ramifications  of  the  Dutch  school. 


CHAPTER   IX. 


RUBENS   AND  VAN   DYCK 


Perhaps  the  chief  characteristic  of  Rubens  as 
a  man  was  absolute  adaptability.  A  pliant  dispo- 
sition, sensitive  to  every  emotion,  able  to  put  him- 
self in  the  place  of  another  to  such  an  extent  that 
a  ready  sympathy  and  a  resultant  tact  endeared 
him  to  all,  it  is  the  more  credit  to  him  that  he  lived 
a  moral  life,  uninjured  by  evil  influences  and  stimu- 
lated by  good. 

One  noticeable  element  in  the  character  of  Rubens 
was  his  strange  mixture  of  great  power  and  malle- 
able sweetness  of  disposition,  which  laid  him.  open 
to  varying  influences.  As  I  shall  try  to  show,  his 
life  was  unusually  subject  to  the  sway  of  others; 
while  he  had  enough  initiative  and  perseverance  to 
develop  his  great  genius  to  its  full  extent,  it  is  easy 
to  trace,  all  through  his  life,  the  results  of  a  number 
of  defined  impressions  made  upon  him  by  the  lives 
with  whom  he  was  thrown,  or  by  circumstances  in 
which  he  was  placed. 

On  the  tomb  of  the  father  of  Rubens,  it  is  stated 
25s 


256     Ube  art  ot  tbe  Bresben  Gallcv^ 

that  he  Hved  in  Cologne  nineteen  years,  and  for 
twenty-six  years  lived  in  peaceful  union  with  his 
wife.  This  statement  throws  little  light  on  the 
birthplace  of  Peter  Paul.  There  has  been  con- 
troversy on  the  subject,  some  writers  affirming  that 
he  was  born  in  Cologne,  and  others  that  he  first 
saw  the  light  in  Antwerp.  During  this  stage  of 
uncertainty,  it  was  suddenly  discovered  that  all  evi- 
dence pointed  to  Peter  Paul  Rubens  having  been 
born  in  a  small  town  in  the  Rhenish  provinces  — 
Siegen.  This  is  now  generally  accepted  as  the  birth- 
place of  the  great  artist. 

It  would  seem  that  the  first  great  influence  upon 
the  early  art  of  Rubens  was  through  his  probable 
master,  Adam  van  Noort.  This  painter  has  been 
variously  reported  as  a  brutal  drunkard,  and  as  a 
rather  genial  ne'er-do-weel.  That  he  was  in  some 
degree  improvident  is  proved  by  the  fact  that  after 
his  death,  the  past  year's  rent  was  remitted  to  his 
wife,  as  stated :  "  for  the  love  of  God  and  by  reason 
of  the  great  poverty  of  the  defunct !  "  In  one  of 
his  matchless  epigrammatic  estimates,  Eugene  Fro- 
mentin  says  of  van  Noort,  "  He  had  a  way  of 
striking  the  canvas  and  imprinting  upon  it  a  tone 
rather  than  a  form,  which  made  it  resound  under 
the  brush."  The  painter  with  this  quality  of  touch 
certainly  left  his  impression  upon  Rubens.  "  He 
massed  many  stout  figures  in  a  little  space,"  says 


IRubens  ant)  Dan  Dpcft  257 

Fromentin,  —  obviously  this  trait  was  also  perpet- 
uated. Again :  "  Everything  that  could  shine, 
shone."  Rubens's  work  itself  could  not  be  more 
accurately  indicated.  Van  Noort's  method  of 
"  rendering  the  action  of  vivid  light  upon  the  blood, 
the  moisture  and  gleam  contracted  by  the  skin  from 
the  heat  of  the  day;  ...  by  much  red  intensified 
by  much  white  — "  was  certainly  brought  to  its 
ultimate  limit  in  some  of  the  fat  and  abominably 
juicy  specimens  whom  Rubens  painted. 

Whether  one  thinks  of  Rubens  as  the  finest  of 
colourists  or  not,  one  must  at  least  award  him  the 
palm  of  supernal  brilliancy.  His  colours  are 
brighter,  gayer,  and  more  lucid  than  those  of  any 
other  artist.  The  juicy  quality  is  particularly  un- 
pleasant, often,  in  flesh;  especially  the  flesh  of  ex- 
tremely stout  women.  At  all  events  he  stands  alone 
in  rendering  this  species  of  mellowness  of  fat. 

Three  of  the  most  marked  influences  in  the  life 
of  Rubens  proceed  from  three  women.  In  the  first 
place,  his  youth  was  guided  and  sustained  by  a  very 
remarkable  mother;  next,  his  first  wife  exerted  a 
refining  influence  over  him,  and  kept  his  life  happy 
and  peaceful  by  her  comprehending  cheerful  devo- 
tion. It  was  not  until  middle  life,  when  he  married 
Helena  Fourment,  that  his  intensely  florid  and  over- 
blown pictures  predominated.  It  will  be  interesting 
to  glance  at  these  three  women  who  had  so  much 


258     XTbe  Brt  ot  tbe  S)rest)en  (Bailer^ 

to  do  with  the  development  of  the  masterful  art- 
ist. 

His  mother  was  strong  and  devoted  both  to  her 
ideals  and  her  sense  of  duty  as  a  wife.  His  father, 
John  Rubens,  who  was  a  lawyer,  was  detected  in  an 
entanglement  with  a  wealthy  woman,  and  wrote  to 
his  wife  in  abject  humility  from  jail ;  her  reply  to 
him  was  one  which  proved  her  to  be  a  rare  charac- 
ter, selfless,  and  high-minded.  "  Even  if  a  long- 
lasting  affection  had  not  preceded  this  misfor- 
tune," she  wrote,  "  I  could  never  hate  you  suffi- 
ciently to  be  unable  to  pardon  a  fault  toward  my- 
self. .  .  .  Never  write  again,  '  Your  unworthy 
husband,'  for  everything  is  forgotten."  When  the 
wretched  man  was  finally  released  from  prison,  he 
was  sent  into  strict  retirement,  and  his  dutiful  wife 
followed  him.  About  four  years  after  this  Peter 
Paul  Rubens  was  born.  The  boy  never  knew  of  the 
unfortunate  episode,  which  proves  that  the  family 
lived  in  harmony. 

After  a  delightful  residence  during  his  youth  in 
the  Court  of  Mantua,  where  he  was  employed  as 
a  painter,  Rubens  and  his  brother,  their  parents 
having  died,  took  a  house  together  in  Antwerp. 
He  did  not  marry  until  he  was  thirty-two,  and  then 
he  fell  in  love  with  Isabella  Brandt.  She  justified 
his  affection  in  every  way,  and  was  a  woman  of 
keen   perceptions,    good-humoured    appreciation   of 


IRubens  an&  lt)an  B^c??  259 

fun,  and  withal  the  cheerful  helpmeet  which  a  man 
needs  to  keep  him  from  being  unduly  sobered  by 
constant  and  exacting  work.  His  art  at  this  time 
shows  much  of  her  influence;  she  was  refined  in 
appearance,  and  it  was  during  his  life  with  her  that 
he  painted  his  supreme  masterpiece,  the  Descent 
from  the  Cross,  as  well  as  many  religious  pictures 
of  a  more  restrained  type. 

As  his  family  increased,  Rubens  and  his  wife 
found  it  expedient  to  move  into  a  more  spacious 
house,  and  here,  also,  the  great  studio  was  opened, 
that  workshop  where  the  master,  aided  by  his  pupils, 
drove  a  thrifty  trade,  turning  out  to  order  hundreds 
of  pictures  which  are  most  of  them,  alas,  ascribed  to 
Rubens  himself.  It  has  militated  greatly  against 
the  excellence  of  his  reputation  that  he  has  been 
credited  with  nearly  all  the  work  of  his  atelier  as 
well  as  with  his  individual  productions.  It  was  his 
habit  in  filling  orders  for  pictures,  to  proceed  on 
strictly  business  principles;  a  painting  by  his  own 
hand  commanded  a  certain  price ;  while  for  a  pic- 
ture finished  by  Rubens,  after  his  scholars  had  done 
the  chief  work,  a  smaller  amount  was  asked;  a 
cheaper  combination  still  could  be  made  by  having 
the  design  alone  by  Rubens,  and  the  actual  work 
by  the  school.  This  great  art  institution  did  a 
great  deal  for  the  cultivation  of  taste  in  the  city 
of  Antwerp ;   but  other  conditions  were  too  strong : 


26o     zbc  Brt  of  tbe  Dresden  Gallery 

the  political  vicissitudes  of  the  time  prevented  the 
benign  influence  from  being  of  long  duration.  The 
long  wars  in  the  Netherlands,  together  with  the  pes- 
tilence, put  an  end  to  his  prosperity,  and  he  moved 
to  Brussels  for  better  precaution.  But  he  could  not 
escape  the  devastating  plague,  and  his  beloved  wife 
died  of  pestilence  in  the  midsummer.  This  bereave- 
ment was  a  very  real  grief  to  Rubens.  A  letter 
written  at  this  time  to  a  French  statesman,  shows 
how^  deeply  he  had  felt  the  blow.  "  In  truth  I  have 
lost  an  excellent  companion,"  he  said,  "  and  one 
worthy  of  all  affection,  for  she  had  none  of  the 
faults  of  her  sex.  Never  displaying  bitterness  or 
weakness,  her  kindness  and  loyalty  were  perfect 
.  .  .  since  the  only  remedy  for  all  such  evils  is 
the  oblivion  that  time  brings,  I  must  undoubtedly 
look  to  time  for  consolation." 

At  a  casual  glance  it  might  seem  that  oblivion 
came  fairly  promptly  in  the  form  of  Helena  Four- 
ment,  whom  he  married  in  four  years  after  Isa- 
bella's death.  A  letter  of  Rubens's,  however,  leads 
one  to  believe  that  it  was  a  marriage  of  a  practical 
and  less  lofty  motive  than  that  of  a  second  love. 
"  Not  being  able  to  accept  a  life  of  celibacy,"  he 
wrote  to  Pieresc,  "  I  have  determined  to  marry 
again."  He  goes  on  to  explain  that  the  lady  is  of 
only  middle  class  origin,  adding,  "  I  feared  to  find 
pride  in  my  companion,  that  special  blemish  of  the 


IRubens  an&  Dan  D^cft  261 

nobility,  this  is  why  I  have  chosen  one  who  will 
not  blush  to  see  me  handle  a  paint-brush." 

It  is  hardly  necessary  to  comment  upon  the  sub- 
sequent influence  of  Helena  upon  the  art  of  Rubens. 
She  appears,  clothed  and  nude,  —  as  Saint  or  as 
courtier,  —  always  the  same  voluptuous,  indolent, 
unintellectual  type  of  bovine  woman. 

Rubens  was  essentially  a  man  of  culture.  All 
that  foreign  travel  and  wide  experience  could  do 
for  him  was  accomplished,  and  he  shows  contin- 
ually the  results  of  his  extended  studies.  He  copied 
the  works  of  the  most  famous  Italians  in  Rome  and 
in  Mantua,  during  his  stay  there  in  1602,  culling 
one  thought  from  Michelangelo,  and  another  from 
Correggio.  His  brother  Philip,  travelling  also  in 
this  year,  wrote  to  him :  "  How  I  should  like  to 
hear  your  impressions  of  Venice,  and  of  the  differ- 
ent cities  of  Italy  that  you  have  already  visited, 
especially  of  Rome !  "  This  elder  brother  also  may 
have  exerted  some  influence  upon  Peter  Paul;  for, 
when  he  seemed  to  him  to  stay  overlong  as  a  copy- 
ist, at  the  Court  of  Mantua,  Philip  wrote  to  him : 
"  Take  care  that  the  duration  of  your  visit  is  not 
prolonged.  ...  I  implore  you  by  all  you  hold 
sacred,  by  your  talent  itself.  ...  I  have  reason  to 
fear,  knowing  your  easy  temper."  This  is  another 
example  of  the  power  of  another  character  over 
that  of  the  painter. 


262     ube  art  ot  tbe  H)resC)en  (Balleri^ 

Rubens  was  entrusted  with  various  diplomatic 
missions.  His  very  suavity  and  graceful  ease  of 
manner  made  him  especially  valuable  in  arrang- 
ing delicate  affairs.  Princes  sending  him  on  these 
pleasant  embassies  took  care  that  he  should  be  well 
provided  with  suitable  funds  in  order  to  appear 
well  and  accomplish  his  office.  In  1603  he  went  to 
convey  certain  gifts  and  works  of  art  to  Spain.  The 
Duke  of  Mantua  wrote  to  his  minister  there,  "  If 
Peter  Paul  needs  money  for  his  return,  you  must 
furnish  him  with  it."  Quite  untrammelled  by  finan- 
cial considerations,  with  no  anxiety,  he  had  noth- 
ing to  do  but  use  his  natural  endowments  to  agree- 
able purpose,  and  to  enjoy  the  delights  of  foreign 
travel  and  the  fascinating  social  side  of  being  an 
ambassador  in  times  of  peace.  The  minister  did 
not  quite  relish  the  demands  upon  the  Mantuan 
funds  for  the  maintenance  of  this  decorative  official. 
He  makes  a  memorandum  of  "  giving  money  to 
the  Fleming  that  he  might  purchase  new  clothes," 
and  he  allowed  his  dissatisfaction  to  carry  him  to 
the  length  of  failing  to  present  Rubens  to  the  King 
on  the  first  opportunity !  Rubens  painted  many  pic- 
tures in  Spain,  principally  portraits.  In  some  of 
these  the  influence  of  Spanish  art,  though  uncon- 
scious, is  traceable. 

After  his  Spanish  visit  Peter  Paul  returned  to 
Mantua,  and  it  was  at  this  time  that  he  painted  one 


IRubens  an&  Dan  D^cft  263 

of  the  large  canvases  in  the  Dresden  gallery,  the 
Drunken  Hercules.  It  was  painted  in  about  1603. 
The  picture  is  intended  to  be  symbolical ;  man,  de- 
graded through  drink  and  debaucheries,  staggering 
through  life  conducted  by  evil  creatures  of  brutish 
wantonness.  The  picture  is  a  perfect  epitome  of 
vulgarity,  but  is  clever  in  its  handling.  The  black 
shadows  on  the  right  are  curiously  contrasted  with 
the  soft  light  at  the  left,  but  the  balance  is  not  at  all 
disturbed  by  this  daring  scheme.  The  power  of 
composition  is  supreme  even  in  the  early  days  of  the 
master.  The  treatment  is  bold  and  sincere.  It  was 
an  early  prophecy  of  these  great  fleshly  studies  to 
which  he  so  largely  devoted  himself  in  later  years. 
The  Roman  school  had  spoken  its  message  to  him 
when  he  conceived  these  half-symbolical  and  half- 
naturalistic  beings. 

Rubens  delighted  in  scenes  of  drunkenness  and 
revelry.  Himself  a  perfectly  correct  liver,  domestic 
and  sober,  he  took  pleasure  in  depicting  those  orgies 
whose  nature  he  knew  well  enough  to  make  him 
avoid  them.  As  one  sees  a  very  plain  spinster  de- 
vote herself  to  the  perusal  or  even  to  the  produc- 
tion of  highly  sentimental  love-stories,  so  Rubens 
indulged  himself  by  depicting  scenes  in  which  he 
would  have  shrunk  with  horror  from  participating. 

Among  the  early  pictures  is  the  large  canvas. 
The  Champion  of  Virtue  Crowned  by  the  Goddess 


264     Ube  Hrt  ot  tbe  H)res&en  Gallery 

of  Victory.  One  is  certainly  convinced  that  this 
armed  knight  must  be  worthy  of  the  honour;  if 
he  is  proof  against  his  Coronation,  and  the  practi- 
cal embrace  of  the  beautiful  goddess  who  presses 
the  wreath  on  his  brow,  he  deserves  his  title! 

It  is  not  to  be  wondered  at  that  an  artist  should 
become  rather  sensual  in  his  tendencies  while  living 
at  a  court  like  that  of  Mantua.  When  a  royal  lady 
was  to  be  given  in  marriage,  the  prospective  impe- 
rial bridegroom's  first  request  was  for  a  portrait 
and  "  measurements  of  her  stature  and  body."  The 
body  dominated  the  mind  in  his  patrons :  once  more 
Rubens's  art  responded  to  the  influence  of  environ- 
ment. 

When  his  much  revered  mother  died  in  1608, 
Rubens  left  Mantua  and  returned  to  Antwerp.  In 
his  first  grief  he  devoted  himself  to  painting  relig- 
ious pictures  in  that  city.  Here  was  a  new  influence 
brought  to  bear  upon  him ;  that  of  sorrow.  The 
solemn  Adoration  of  the  Magi,  the  Dispute  of  the 
Sacrament,  and  other  subjects  of  a  sacred  charac- 
ter claimed  his  attention  during  this  period.  Then 
came  his  marriage  with  Isabella  Brandt,  and  the 
sweet,  elevating  effect  which  his  new  happiness  pro- 
duced upon  his  plastic  nature. 

In  16 ID  he  was  made  court  painter  to  the  Arch- 
dukes of  Brussels,  with  the  "  oath  pertaining  to  the 
Court  Painter  of  their  Serene  Highnesses."     As  a 


IRubens  an&  \I>an  H)i5cft  265 

portrait-painter  Rubens  was  now  in  much  demand. 
In  this  capacity  he  is  not  intimate;  he  uses  a  type, 
the  nearest  in  his  repertoire  to  which  the  subject 
will  conform,  but  the  type  dominates  rather  than 
the  actual  personality  then  represented.  In  this 
respect  he  is  far  inferior  to  Velasquez.  His  por- 
traits did  not  interfere  with  his  accomplishment  of 
one  of  the  world's  greatest  masterpieces,  the  De- 
scent from  the  Cross.  Less  flamboyant  than  the 
Elevation,  which  was  painted  earlier,  when  he  was 
fresher  from  his  Italian  impressions,  it  denotes  a 
settled  peace  and  majesty  of  grief  which  are  deeply 
appealing.  Another  sorrow  had  left  its  mark  upon 
his  sensitive  soul :  the  death  of  his  brother  Philip. 
The  next  picture  in  Dresden  in  order  of  execution 
is  the  St.  Jerome.  It  is  rather  red  and  crude,  but 
in  some  respects  finer  than  Rubens's  later  work. 
The  attitude  is  reverent,  and  the  whole  is  a  digni- 
fied composition.  But  it  is  not  very  much  more.  St. 
Jerome  is  a  rather  stout,  healthy-looking  hermit,  — 
it  must  have  been  early  in  his  career,  before  the 
mortifications  of  the  flesh  had  made  great  inroads 
upon  his  constitution !  Yet  he  is  advanced  in  years. 
In  short,  the  subject  is  not  very  deeply  studied  or 
intellectually  apprehended  on  this  occasion.  The 
picture  is  signed  by  Rubens's  initials  in  full.  It  was 
painted  by  order  for  Italy,  and  belonged  to  the 
Modena  Gallery.     It  would  seem  that  Rubens  had 


266     XTbe  Brt  ot  tbe  2)re6^en  Oallet^ 

collected  all  the  possible  types  of  vegetation  in  the 
desert  to  which  St.  Jerome  retired,  in  order  to  give 
a  little  sample  of  each.  Leaves,  grass,  trees,  and 
bushes  are  carefully  differentiated. 

Next  in  order  among  the  Dresden  pictures  is  the 
Lion  and  Tiger  Hunt,  but  this  is  largely  the  work 
of  pupils,  of  whom  he  had  many  in  his  working 
studio  at  this  time.  It  is  scattered  in  interest  and 
rather  confused. 

Again  the  impressionable  Rubens  allowed  a  de- 
lightful element  to  creep  into  his  art,  —  he  began 
painting  little  children,  while  his  own  were  playing 
about  him.  His  chubby  cherubs,  whether  intended 
to  be  sacred  or  secular,  were  all  based  upon  the 
same  blooming  models. 

His  academy  was  as  well  ordered  as  his  life.  His 
pupils  were  all  trained,  each  in  a  special  direction, 
with  admirable  judgment,  partly  with  a  view  to 
their  own  development,  and  partly  in  order  to  fill 
the  spaces  in  the  master's  pictures,  which,  from  this 
time  on,  are  seldom  entirely  by  his  own  hand,  unless 
the  subject  were  of  special  importance.  Sometimes 
Rubens  supplied  only  the  original  drawing;  some- 
times he  touched  the  picture  up  afterward,  and  some- 
times he  painted  the  figures,  leaving  it  to  his  pupils 
to  fill  in  the  backgrounds  and  accessories.  Some 
of  the  pupils  of  Rubens  were  already  well-known 
artists  who  came  simply  for  the  advantage  of  col- 


IRubens  an^  Dan  H)pcft  267 

laboration  with  him :  as  assistants,  they  studied  with 
him,  not  as  ordinary  untrained  pupils  who  were 
just  beginning  their  researches.  Among  these  was 
Van  Dyck,  of  whom  we  shall  next  make  some  study. 
Velvet  Brueghel  also  assisted  Rubens  at  this  time, 
painting  animals  and  foregrounds  with  much  bril- 
liancy. 

There  is  an  interesting  list  of  pictures  preserved 
in  a  letter  from  Rubens  to  a  patron.  This  patron 
was  negotiating  an  exchange  of  certain  antiquities 
for  one  of  his  paintings.  Rubens  quotes  the  num- 
ber of  his  works  then  available,  giving  statistics  as 
to  their  workmanship.  This  letter  is  invaluable  in 
determining  the  authorship  of  certain  pictures.  One 
of  these  reads  :  "  Daniel  amidst  many  lions ;  painted 
from  life ;  original ;  entirely  by  my  own  hand."  An- 
other :  "  Achilles  clothed  as  a  woman  ...  a  charm- 
ing work  and  full  of  many  beautiful  young  girls." 
Here  also  occurs  the  "  Hunt  of  men  on  horse- 
back with  lions,  begun  by  one  of  my  pupils  after  a 
picture  that  I  did  for  his  most  Serene  Highness, 
the  Duke  of  Bavaria:  wholly  retouched  by  me." 
The  patron,  Sir  Dudley  Carleton,  demurred  some- 
what at  the  prices  of  some  of  the  pictures,  where- 
upon Rubens  wrote  an  honest  letter  which  shows 
a  charming  lack  of  duplicity  for  a  courtier !  "  The 
reason  why  I  wish  to  make  the  exchange  entirely  in 
pictures,"  he  says,  "  is  sufficiently  clear,  for  although 


268     Ube  Hrt  ot  tbe  H)rest)en  Gallery? 

I  have  put  them  down  at  their  exact  vahie,  never- 
theless they  cost  me  nothing,  and  as  everybody  is 
more  inchned  to  be  generous  with  the  fruits  of  his 
own  garden  than  with  those  bought  in  the  market 
...  I  do  not  wish  ...  to  exceed  the  bounds  of 
prudent  economy." 

Rubens  was  dehghted  with  Van  Dyck,  and  the 
more  dehcate  sense  of  colour  possessed  by  the  latter 
was  probably  of  use  in  tempering  Rubens  in  his  most 
glowing  period.  Indeed,  they  worked  together  so 
much  that  critics  now  are  having  much  discussion 
as  to  certain  portraits  of  this  time,  —  whether  they 
be  by  Rubens  or  Van  Dyck.  For  instance,  the  Gen- 
tleman Standing  by  a  Table,  No.  960,  has  recently 
been  pronounced  by  Doctor  Bode,  an  eminent  Ger- 
man critic,  to  be  by  Van  Dyck,  while  Emile  Michel 
claims  that  it  is  too  completely  the  work  of  a  past 
master  in  portraiture  to  have  been  produced  by  a 
young  beginner.  For  at  the  time  of  this  portrait's 
painting,  about  1619,  Van  Dyck  w^as  not  a  finished 
painter,  while  Rubens  was  at  the  height  of  his  art, 
and  therefore  more  likely  to  have  executed  this 
clever  portrait  than  the  pupil.  Michel  thinks  that 
Doctor  Bode  has  gone  a  little  too  far  in  giving  some 
of  Rubens's  pictures  to  Van  Dyck,  although  un- 
doubtedly hitherto  many  of  Van  Dyck's  pictures 
have  passed  for  Rubens's.  Comparisons  can  be 
made  particularly  well  at  Dresden,  and  although 


IRubens  anb  Dan  D^cft  269 

in  a  book  of  this  size  it  is  not  possible  to  go  into 
the  controversy  to  any  extent,  yet  it  is  interesting 
to  see  how  many  of  these  pictures  have  been  attrib- 
uted in  recent  years  to  the  later  master.  Rubens 
always  called  Van  Dyck  his  "  best  pupil,"  and  the 
theory  that  he  was  jealous  of  him  as  a  rival  has  no 
foundation. 

The  Boar  Hunt  in  Dresden  is  by  Rubens's  hand. 
In  the  larger  replica  in  England,  the  work  of  his 
pupils  can  be  detected,  but  this  one  is  genuine.  He 
has  taken  a  fine  opportunity  to  ensnare  his  boar  in 
the  gnarled  roots  of  a  tree  which  has  been  struck 
by  lightning,  and  there,  brought  to  bay  by  the  dogs, 
rustics,  and  hunters,  the  hideous  monster  forms 
the  centre  of  interest.  The  scene  is  tumultuous  and 
the  subject  unattractive. 

The  Old  Woman  with  a  Brazier  is  a  curious  de- 
parture from  Rubens's  usual  style.  Her  face  is 
illuminated  from  below,  by  the  dull  glow  from  the 
coals.  Elsheimer  had  introduced  this  treatment  of 
light.  She  is  looking  with  quizzical  interest  out  of 
the  canvas  at  some  object,  presumably  the  specta- 
tor's right  hand.  This  picture  is  a  fragment  cut 
from  a  work  in  Brussels,  Venus  in  Vulcan's  Forge. 
It  is  there  replaced  by  a  clumsy  figure  of  Vulcan. 
To  be  sure,  this  study  could  have  had  little  signifi- 
cance in  its  original  situation  in  the  picture  in 
which  it  was  painted;    probably  the  old  crone  was 


270     Ube  Brt  ot  tbe  Dres^en  Gallery? 

admiring  Venus,  who  occupies  a  position  about  in 
the  direction  of  her  surprised  eyes.  But  just  who 
the  old  lady  was  intended  to  be,  in  the  Forge,  is 
a  question,  and  no  doubt  the  owner  saw  that  by 
ehminating  her,  he  might  possess  two  works  in- 
stead of  one,  and  conscientiously  had  a  Vulcan  sub- 
stituted. 

Rubens  was  a  temperate  and  sane  man  in  all  de- 
partments of  life.  Neither  in  food,  drink,  play,  nor 
even  in  gossip,  did  he  ever  go  to  excess.  His  was 
an  even  and  lovable  nature,  not  a  wild  neurotic 
specimen  of  what  is  often  wrongly  termed  the 
"  artistic  temperament."  His  house  at  Antwerp 
was  a  beautiful  and  dignified  structure,  in  rather 
florid  style  for  our  taste,  but  nobly  proportioned 
and  v/ith  attractive  features. 

Rubens's  journey  to  France  to  paint  his  celebrated 
set  of  portraits  of  Marie  de  Medici  was  beset  with 
small  difficulties,  of  which  one  seldom  hears;  in  a 
letter  he  said :  "  If  instead  of  the  scheme  made  by 
the  court,  the  choice  of  subjects  had  been  left  to  me, 
no  one  need  have  feared  scandals  or  equivocal  com- 
ments ...  if  they  would  only  give  me  a  free  hand 
nothing  would  be  easier,  for  such  abundant  and 
splendid  material  would  suffice  for  the  decoration 
of  ten  galleries."  And  again :  "  I  have  had  enough 
of  this  court;  if  I  am  not  paid  with  .  ,  ,  punc- 
tuality ...  it  is  possible  .  .  .  that  I  shall  not  re- 


IRubens  an&  IDan  D^cft  271 

visit  it.  .  .  .  Time  passes,  and  to  my  sorrow  I  am 
kept  from  home."  When  he  finally  decided  to  re- 
turn home,  he  found  difficulty  in  securing  good 
horses ;  he  had  to  travel  with  "  poor  half-dead 
beasts  walking  single  file,  led  by  postilions."  His 
return  was  in  1625;  in  1626  he  lost  his  beloved 
Isabella.  We  have  already  indicated  what  a  sorrow 
the  loss  of  his  wife  was  to  Peter  Paul,  and  how, 
partly  to  divert  his  mind,  and  partly  because  the 
times  were  ripe,  he  went  to  Spain  soon  after.  It  was 
to  "  seek  peace  and  ensue  it  "  that  Rubens  under- 
took this  mission.  Flanders  had  need  of  England's 
cooperation,  and  Rubens  became  the  diplomatic 
mouthpiece  of  the  provinces.  "  War  is  a  chastise- 
ment from  heaven,"  said  he,  "  and  we  ought  to  do 
our  best  to  avoid  the  scourge."  Velasquez  and 
Rubens  became  intimate  friends  at  this  time. 

The  portrait  of  his  two  sons  is  in  Vienna,  but 
it  was  once  supposed  that  the  excellent  copy  in 
Dresden  was  the  original.  It  is  a  fascinating  har- 
mony in  light  blue  and  golden  yellow;  but  it  was 
probably  executed  in  the  studio  —  perhaps  under  the 
master's  inspection.  One  reason  for  deciding  upon 
this  as  the  later  of  the  two  copies  is,  that  in  the 
original,  it  was  evidently  intended  to  paint  the 
boys  only  to  the  waist ;  as  an  afterthought,  the 
panel  was  elongated,  and  the   full  figures   substi- 


272     Zbc  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresden  Gallerp 

tilted  for  the  busts.     This  was  painted  before  the 
death  of  their  mother. 

In  1629  Rubens  continued  his  negotiations  for 
British  interest  by  going  to  London.  He  was  high 
in  favour  with  Charles  I.,  and  he  induced  the  King 
to  agree  in  writing  not  to  ally  English  forces  with 
those  of  France  while  the  treaty  should  last. 
Rubens  speaks  naively  of  England  in  a  letter  to 
Dupuy :  "  The  island  in  which  I  now  am  seems 
to  me  a  place  well  worthy  the  curiosity  of  a  man  of 
taste."  If  somewhat  patronizing,  this  was  intended 
as  a  compliment.  On  another  occasion  he  marvels 
at  the  art  treasures  to  be  seen  in  London,  "  instead 
of  the  barbarism  to  be  expected  in  such  a  cli- 
mate, at  so  great  a  distance  from  the  culture  of 
Italy!" 

Soon  after  his  return  his  marriage  to  Helena 
Fourment  took  place.  His  frankly  given  reasons 
for  this  union  have  been  quoted.  The  wedding  was 
a  gorgeous  one,  a  clause  in  the  contract  calling  upon 
the  bride's  parents  to  be  financially  responsible  for 
the  ceremonial :  "  in  such  a  way  as  to  deserve  hon- 
our and  thanks." 

Then  followed  a  succession  of  mythological 
pictures,  clothed  figures,  nudes,  in  fact,  —  Helena 
in  every  style,  yet  always  the  same;  fat,  smooth, 
moist,  lacking  in  intellectual  animation,  an  amiable, 
peaceful  animal,  and  yet  apparently  entirely  satisfy- 


IRubens  anb  Dan  B^cft  273 

ing  to  the  soul  of  Rubens.  In  Dresden  we  have  her 
as  Bathsheba  bathing;  as  Diana  returning  from  the 
chase;  as  one  of  the  "blessed"  in  the  Last  Judg- 
ment; and  (from  the  studio,  not  entirely  painted 
by  her  husband)  as  Atalanta,  receiving  the  hideous 
boar's  head  from  a  very  operatic  Meleager.  In  the 
Garden  of  Love  she  appears  in  court  dress,  —  we 
think  her  more  attractive  in  this  guise.  Her  charms 
were  too  vast  for  entire  nudity  to  be  becoming. 

Dr.  John  Moore,  who  did  not  pretend  to  be  an 
art  critic,  put  his  finger  on  the  point  at  which 
Rubens  is  so  unattractive  to  this  unanalytic  ob- 
server of  keen  wits  but  with  little  aesthetic  training. 
"  The  strength  and  expression  of  this  great  artist's 
pencil,  the  natural  glow  of  his  colouring,  and  the 
fertility  of  his  fancy  deserve  the  highest  encomi- 
ums," says  Doctor  Moore,  in  the  late  eighteenth  cen- 
tury, from  Dresden;  ''yet  one  cannot  help  regret- 
ting that  he  had  so  violent  a  passion  for  fat  women. 
That  kind  of  nature  which  he  had  seen  early  in  life 
in  his  own  country  had  laid  such  hold  upon  his 
imagination  that  it  could  not  be  eradicated  by  all 
the  elegant  models  he  afterward  studied  in  Italy. 
Some  of  his  female  figures  in  this  gallery  are  so 
much  of  the  Dutch  make,  and  so  fat,  that  it  is  rather 
oppressive  to  look  at  them  in  this  very  hot 
weather!  "  Whistler's  remark  about  Rubens  seems 
just    when    we    look    at    many   of    these    pictures. 


274     XTbe  Brt  of  tbe  2)rest>en  Gallers 

"  Whether  or  not  Rubens  was  a  great  painter,  he 
was  certainly  an  industrious  person." 

The  attractive  Diana  Returning  from  the  Chase 
is  a  studio  piece,  but  has  many  touches  of  Rubens's 
upon  it  also.  Another  mythological  subject,  the 
Sleeping  Argus,  is  by  the  master's  own  hand.  The 
wily  Mercury  has  lulled  his  watchful  foe  to  sleep, 
by  imitating  on  his  pipe  the  monotonous  sounds 
which  illustrate  the  story  of  Pan  and  Syrinx,  with 
which  he  has  been  regaling  him.  The  pretty  white 
heifer,  lo,  comes  stealthily  around  to  Mercury,  as 
if  she  knew  that  her  thraldom  was  now  over.  It 
is  a  charming  pastoral,  and  one  of  the  few  subjects 
of  its  class  in  which  the  fat  women  are  absent!  It 
is  a  relief  to  meet  a  Rubens  now  and  then  which 
deals  only  with  masculine  types. 

The  enormous  Neptune  Subduing  the  Waves, 
which  is  quite  a  Shakespearean  Tempest,  once 
adorned  a  triumphal  arch  erected  in  Antwerp  in 
1635.  It  is  touched  up  by  the  master,  but  is  a 
studio  work  in  the  main  masses.  It  is  known  by 
the  title,  "  Quos  Ego !  " 

A  Bacchanale,  from  the  studio,  No.  974,  shows 
a  satyr  pressing  out  grapes,  assisted  by  some  elfin 
children,  while  a  tigress  lies  at  their  feet  with  her 
cubs. 

Among  the  most  charming  works  of  Rubens's 
studio  is  the  large  canvas.   No.    1000,   known  as 


IRubens  auD  l)an  2)^cft  275 

Diana  with  her  Nymphs  Hunting.  It  has  a  quaint 
element  about  it  which  is  seldom  found  in  the  work 
of  Rubens  or  his  pupils.  It  is  a  sort  of  fantastic 
genre,  a  link  between  the  usual  mythological  scenes 
and  the  Fete  Champetre.  Diana  —  a  fully  clothed 
maiden  of  the  fields,  half-shepherdess  and  half-court 
lady  —  wears  a  brocade  robe  jauntily  caught  up 
over  a  silk  skirt,  and  a  little  flat  velvet  hat  on  one 
side  of  her  pretty  head,  while  the  classical  com- 
promise is  made  by  her  bare  feet  in  sandals.  The 
nymphs  are  modern  down  to  the  feet  —  they,  too, 
wear  sandals!  One  buxom  peasant  in  Dutch  cos- 
tume blows  a  winding  horn,  while  two  little  girls  are 
carrying  the  loaded  quiver  of  the  huntress.  The 
stately  straight  yet  willowy  figure  of  Diana  is  not 
typical  of  the  school,  but  it  shows  with  what  good 
effect  Rubens's  type  might  have  been  modified.  The 
picture  was  once  unanimously  given  to  Velasquez, 

Rubens's  last  years  were  passed  in  the  beautiful 
and  romantic  Chateau  de  Steen,  which  he  purchased, 
and  in  which  he  and  his  Helena  dwelt  to  their  mu- 
tual satisfaction.  He  probably  painted  the  Garden 
of  Love  (in  Room  M)  while  he  was  living  on  this 
estate,  the  subject  being  suggested  by  the  surround- 
ings. He  became  a  sufferer  from  gout  and  his 
work  was  after  that  necessarily  rather  slower. 

In  1640  the  accounts  of  Rubens's  health  were 
alarming.      The    Archduke    Ferdinand    wrote    to 


276     Ube  Brt  of  tbe  H)res&en  Galleri? 

Philip  IV.  explaining  the  delay  concerning  certain 
pictures  which  he  had  ordered :  "  Rubens  has  been 
crippled  in  both  his  hands  for  over  a  month,  with 
small  hope  of  his  being  able  to  use  his  brushes 
again."  Rubens  had  already  made  his  will,  fearing 
that  he  was  not  destined  to  live  long.  It  is  recorded 
by  the  Notary  that  Peter  Paul  and  Helena  had  both 
appeared  before  him,  "  sound  of  mind,  heart,  and 
memory,  .  .  .  although  the  aforesaid  gentleman 
was  ill  in  body  and  in  bed."  His  last  illness  was  a 
painful  one.  Walpole  disposes  of  him  in  a  sum- 
mary way,  remarking:  "  He  died  of  the  gout  in  his 
own  country  in  1640."  But  it  is  probable  that  some 
complication  more  serious  was  added  to  his  usual 
complaint.  One  of  his  feet  was  operated  on,  —  the 
bill  of  the  "  barbers  "  in  attendance  is  extant,  "  for 
their  attention  to  the  defunct's  feet." 

In  examining  any  collection  of  Rubens's  pictures, 
one  may  arrive  at  a  fair  idea  of  his  technical  meth- 
ods. The  painter,  Delacroix,  sums  up  the  facts :  "  I 
am  sometimes  angry  with  him,  and  quarrel  with  his 
coarse  forms,"  he  says.  "  But  how  he  rises  above 
the  small  qualities  that  are  the  whole  baggage  of 
the  others!  .  .  .  his  chief  quality  ...  is  his  ex- 
traordinary vividness,  ...  his  extraordinary  life. 
.  .  .  There  is  no'  great  artist  without  this  gift." 

When  Rubens  died  in  1640,  his  family  received 
a  large  fortune  which  he  had  amassed,  and  instantly 


IRubens  an&  IDan  H^^cft  277 

tendered  proof  of  their  respect  for  his  memory  by 
giving  him  a  thousand-florin  funeral ! 

It  is  but  nonnal  to  turn  from  Rubens  to  Van 
Dyck.  One  often  wonders,  with  Fromentin,  what 
Van  Dyck  would  have  been  without  Rubens.  In 
what  channel  would  this  marvellous  technical  ability 
have  turned?  (For  probably  he  would  never  have 
carved  out  an  independent  course  for  himself.) 
Van  Dyck,  in  his  art  and  in  his  character,  followed 
the  line  of  least  resistance.  Easily  influenced  to 
good  or  evil,  he  yet  had  sufficient  sanity  to  keep 
him  from  falling  into  the  excesses  of  his  model,  and 
his  work,  while  it  is  full  of  Rubens's  knowledge 
and  charm,  lacks  all  its  objectionable  features,  and 
has  the  delicate  touch  of  the  refined  personality  of 
Van  Dyck  himself.  As  a  pretty  girl  may  look  like 
a  handsome  man,  lacking  the  qualities  which  give 
the  man  strength,  and  yet  would  give  the  woman 
coarseness,  so  a  picture  by  Van  Dyck  is  full  of 
Rubens's  expression  without  his  earthiness. 

Anton  Van  Dyck  was  born  in  Antwerp  in  1599. 
He  was  baptized  in  the  cathedral  the  day  after  his 
birth.  His  early  years  were  passed  among  artists, 
Snellincx,  Jan  de  Wael,  and  Jan  Brueghel,  to  some 
of  whom  he  was  probably  related.  The  first  influ- 
ences, at  any  rate,  were  aesthetic  ones.  The  boy  was 
sent  to  Van  Balen  to  study  when  he  was  ten,  and 
on  the  same  day  Sustermans  was  admitted  to  the 


278     XLbc  Hrt  of  tbe  2)reB&en  ©allerp 

school.  The  youths  entered  at  once  upon  a  friend- 
ship. Sustermans  was  afterward  the  court  painter 
in  Florence.  By  the  time  he  was  fourteen  years  of 
age,  Van  Dyck  was  painting  portraits;  at  sixteen 
he  set  up  his  own  establishment  apart  from  his 
family;  possibly  this  early  liberty  may  have  sown 
the  seeds  of  a  later  libertinage,  for  he  was  unfortu- 
nately rather  profligate  in  after-life.  Jan  Brueghel 
was  with  him  in  his  studio  life  at  this  time. 

Van  Dyck  was  admitted  into  the  Guild  of  St. 
Luke  in  16 18,  an  unusual  honour  to  a  youth  of 
nineteen ;  and  he  paid  his  "  wine  dues  "  in  full  the 
next  year.  In  16 18  he  painted  the  two  fine  por- 
traits in  Dresden,  which  were  first  given  to  Rubens, 
Nos.  1022  and  1023.  It  is  not  known  exactly  when 
he  went  to  paint  in  Rubens's  studio,  but  among  the 
early  pictures  executed  under  the  influence  of  that 
master  are  the  Drunken  Silenus  and  the  St.  Jerome, 
which  hang  here. 

The  Drunken  Silenus  is  dashing  in  colour,  and 
the  attitudes  and  general  treatment  are  suggestive 
of  his  master.  The  red  and  gray  are  like  the  shades 
frequently  used  by  Rubens,  and  the  Silenus  and  his 
male  companion  are  reminiscent  of  various  figures 
which  he  painted.  The  pale  woman  on  the  left  is 
rather  a  precursor  of  the  style  which  was  to  be 
Van  Dyck's  own.  The  thoughtful  young  man  in  a 
cloak  looks  across  in  a  tragic  way  at  the  Bacchante ; 


IRubens  anb  Dan  D^ck       •      279 

one  might  imagine  that  he  was  a  lover,  who  had 
been  paying  his  court  to  the  girl,  and  that  this 
revelation  of  a  drunken  father  had  interposed  an 
impassable  barrier  to  their  happiness!  He  looks 
like  a  scholar,  helpless  before  the  besotted  vulgarity 
of  the  death  of  the  intellectual  life. 

Another  early  Van  Dyke  is  the  St.  Jerome.  As 
it  hangs,  near  that  of  Rubens,  it  is  easy  to  compare 
the  two.  Evidently  Van  Dyck  was  forming  his 
own  style  all  the  time,  in  spite  of  what  he  learned 
from  Rubens.  He  has  modified  the  red  tones,  and 
his  saint  is  less  sleek  and  well  fed.  As  the  same 
model  posed  for  Silenus  and  for  St.  Jerome,  it  is 
highly  creditable  to  Antony  that  he  was  able  to  put 
such  different  interpretations  upon  the  same  ana- 
tomical peculiarities! 

In  1620  the  Earl  of  Arundel  persuaded  Van 
Dyck  to  go  to  England.  Not  much  is  known  about 
this  first  visit  of  Van  Dyck,  the  chief  allusion  to 
it  being  an  entry  among  the  State  Accounts,  which 
takes  the  form  of  an  order  to  pay  to  "  Anthony 
Vandike  "  a  sum  of  money  "  for  speciall  service 
by  him  performed  for  his  Majestic,"  and  also  "  a 
passe  for  Anthony  Vandike  gentleman,  his  Majes- 
tie's  servant,  to  travaile  for  eight  monthes,  he  hav- 
inge  obtayned  his  Majestie's  leave  in  that  be- 
half." 

On  Van  Dyck's  return  to  Antwerp,  therefore,  he 


28o    ubc  Hrt  ot  tbe  BresDeu  (Ballerp 

occupied  the  position  of  a  Court  official  of  King 
James  L,  instead  of  as  a  pupil  to  Rubens.  He  was 
only  twenty-one,  but  was  now  famous  in  several 
countries.  Among  the  pictures  painted  at  this  time 
was  the  Old  Man,  No.  1022,  in  M,  which  was  orig- 
inally attributed  to  Rubens.  This,  and  its  compan- 
ion, the  portrait  of  an  Old  Woman,  No.  1023,  are 
now  given  to  Van  Dyck  in  his  early  period.  They 
are  splendid  specimens,  and  surely  must  have  been 
good  likenesses. 

When  Van  Dyck  left  Antwerp  to  pursue  his 
travels,  in  October,  1621,  Rubens  gave  him  his  best 
horse  as  a  parting  gift.  Van  Dyck,  mounted  on 
this  charger,  started  off  bravely.  In  the  course  of 
his  trip  in  Italy  he  had  the  pleasure  of  seeing  again 
his  old  friend,  Sustermans,  in  his  position  as  Court 
Painter  in  Florence.  He  spent  two  or  three  years 
in  Genoa.  The  sketch-book  which  he  used  in  Italy 
is  still  presei-ved,  and  is  a  most  interesting  record  of 
his  stay.  Among  other  drawings  in  this  invaluable 
volume  is  a  study  of  the  ancient  Sofonisba  Anguis- 
sola,  at  that  time  ninety-six  years  old,  and  blind. 
Sofonisba  had  been  a  leading  painter  herself,  and 
had  personal  recollection  of  Titian  and  his  contem- 
poraries ;  she  also  gave  the  young  artist  some  val- 
uable points  about  methods  of  painting  old  age. 

Van  Dyck  probably  left  Genoa  about  1627.  He 
returned  to  Antwerp,  but  his  style  had  now  changed 


IRubens  anb  IDan  D^cft  281 

considerably,  and  his  likeness  to  Rubens  was  less 
marked.  Italian  influence,  and  his  great  admiration 
for  Velasquez,  had  given  him  a  penchant  for  grays 
and  cooler  shadows,  for  blacks  and  lower  tones. 
While  religious  subjects  were  to  Rubens  simply  op- 
portunities for  scenic  and  anatomic  display,  to  Van 
Dyck  they  took  on  a  different  aspect,  and  he  is  more 
reverent  in  treating  sacred  themes.  This  may  be 
noted  in  his  figures  of  the  Apostles  which  hang 
in  M. 

The  masterly  portraits,  1023  C  and  D,  were 
originally  given  to  Rubens.  One  is  known  as  a 
Gentleman  drawing  on  his  Gloves,  and  the  other  as  a 
Woman  in  a  Dress  Laced  with  Gold.  The  Portrait 
of  a  Lady  with  her  child  is  charming  and  winsome ; 
and  the  brown-haired  young  man,  who  was  also  sup- 
posed to  have  been  painted  by  Rubens,  is  remark- 
able for  his  vital  eyes.  The  bust  of  a  man  in 
armour.  No.  1043,  ^^  attributed  to  Van  Dyck,  but 
is  questioned.  It  is  very  good  in  quality,  however, 
very  much  modelled,  but  the  outline  rather  hazy. 
One  reason  why  Van  Dyck  is  so  good  and  so  ver- 
satile is  that  he  never  as  an  independent  painter 
actually  created  a  type  of  his  own,  as  so  many  men 
have  done;  this  method,  while  it  often  characterizes 
greater  artists,  usually  renders  them  less  satisfac- 
tory in  likenesses. 

The  Youthful  Jesus  treading  on  the  Serpent  is 


282     zhc  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresden  Gallery 

not  a  powerful  work,  and  shows  how  much  better 
Van  Dyck  was  when  drawing  his  inspiration  from 
nature  instead  of  from  his  imagination. 

It  seems  to  me  that  the  Portrait  of  a  Com- 
mander in  Armour,  with  his  flaming  red  scarf  con- 
trasted against  the  cool  steely  tones,  is  as  perfect  an 
example  of  this  painter  at  his  best  as  any  in  Europe. 
The  firm,  cool  reserve,  so  well  typified  by  the  hard 
trustworthy  armour,  and  the  dash  of  red,  suggesting 
enthusiasm  and  courage,  make  this  noble  picture  a 
great  emblematic  war-note  as  well  as  a  superb  por- 
trait. 

An  interesting  comparison  can  be  made  between 
the  Portrait  of  a  Gentleman  in  black  near  a  pillar, 
and  the  Portrait  of  a  Man,  seated,  in  a  fur  coat. 
In  the  first  all  the  tones  are  fine  and  cool ;  the  re- 
served aristocrat,  with  his  well-tempered  good 
breeding,  is  seen,  and  the  sentiment  is  carried  out 
fully.  On  the  other  hand,  the  warm  browns  in  the 
second  portrait  are  full  of  depth  and  purpose;  it 
is  a  different  kind  of  personality  which  Van  Dyck 
wishes  to  portray:  this  is  probably  a  portrait  of  a 
Prince  of  Genoa,  one  of  the  Giustignani.  He  is  no 
quiet  man  of  leisure,  but  a  leader  of  men,  who  is 
extending  his  hand  in  debate  or  command,  —  a  man 
of  action  and  hot  in  temperament;  Southern  blood 
contrasted  with  Northern;  a  world  of  differentia- 
tion in  character  may  be  seen  between  the  two. 


VAN    DYCK.  —  PORTRAIT    OF    A    COMMANDER    IN    ARMOUR 


IRubens  ant)  Dan  D^cft  283 

People  have  criticized  Van  Dyck  for  a  certain  suave 
sameness ;   this  is  unfair. 

In  163 1  or  1632  Van  Dyck  returned  to  England, 
and  became  court  painter  to  Charles  I.  At  this  time 
he  was  thirty-two  years  of  age,  and  at  the  full 
measure  of  his  ability.  He  was  presented  with  a 
house  in  Blackfriars,  with  Inigo  Jones  as  architect 
at  his  bidding,  and  he  had  summer  apartments  in 
the  Royal  palace  at  Eltham.  He  now  began  to 
paint  English  royal  likenesses,  alluded  to  in  the 
Warrants  of  the  Privy  Seal,  as  "  Our  ane  royall 
portraiture,  our  royall  consort,  and  one  great  piece 
of  our  royall  self,  consort,  and  children."  In  Dres- 
den we  have  one  of  his  portraits  of  the  three  chil- 
dren, and  the  copy  by  Sir  Peter  Lely  of  the  por- 
trait of  Charles  in  the  habit  of  St.  George,  the  orig- 
inal of  which  was  burnt  at  Whitehall.  One  of  the 
twenty-five  likenesses  which  he  painted  of  Queen 
Henrietta  Maria  also  hangs  here :  she  is  attired  in 
blue  satin.  The  English  royal  portraits  are  rather 
more  conventional  than  some  of  Van  Dyck's  Conti- 
nental work.  The  picture  of  the  three  children  is 
charming  in  colouring,  being  almost  entirely  yellow 
and  white. 

While  he  was  living  at  court  Van  Dyck  became 
extravagant  and  licentious.  He  complained  play- 
fully to  the  King :  "  Open  table  for  one's  friends 
and  open  pockets  for  one's  mistresses  soon  show 


284     Ubc  art  of  tbe  2)res&en  (Balleri? 

the  bottom  of  the  exchequer."  The  King  and  Queen 
consulted  together,  and  decided  to  save  their  valua- 
ble painter  from  ruin  by  arranging  a  suitable  mar- 
riage. His  bride  so  chosen  was  Mary  Ruthven,  a 
well-connected  young  girl,  through  whom  Van 
Dyck  became  related  to  many  families  in  the  nobil- 
ity. There  is  a  tradition  that  when  the  news  of 
his  intended  marriage  reached  his  mistress,  Mar- 
garet Lemon,  she,  in  a  fit  of  jealous  rage,  attacked 
him  with  scissors,  trying  to  wound  his  right  hand 
in  order  to  incapacitate  him  for  further  artistic 
work  at  court. 

After  going  back  to  Antwerp  for  awhile  at  the 
time  of  Rubens's  death,  in  1640,  Van  Dyck  returned 
to  England  much  out  of  health.  He  died  in  Decem- 
ber, 1 64 1,  and  was  buried  in  St.  Paul's  near  John 
of  Gaunt.  His  body  and  his  monument  were  des- 
troyed in  the  Great  Fire  of  London  in  1666. 

His  effect  upon  English  art  was  marvellous,  all 
the  more  remarkable  because,  out  of  his  career  of 
twenty-five  active  years  in  painting,  only  seven  years 
were  spent  in  London,  and  his  best  works  were  not 
produced  there. 

We  have  several  descriptions  of  Van  Dyck's 
methods  of  painting.  While  he  was  working  in 
Genoa  one  of  his  clients  complained  that  he  was 
obliged  to  sit  for  seven  whole  days  from  morning 
to  night,  and  was  not  permitted  to  watch  progress, 


IRubens  ant)  Dan  H)^cft  285 

only  being  allowed  to  see  his  own  portrait  after  it 
was  finished  to  the  artist's  liking.  There  are  also 
accounts  of  his  insisting  upon  having  his  sitters 
dine  with  him,  that  no  time  might  be  lost.  But 
an  Antwerp  patron,  of  whom  Van  Dyck  painted  a 
likeness  on  three  separate  occasions,  tells  that  the 
master,  with  great  method,  arranged  to  work  only 
a  short  time  each  day  on  any  one  portrait,  having  an 
appointment  for  each  sitter,  never  keeping  one 
client  more  than  an  hour.  When  this  time  had 
expired,  the  sitter  was  politely  invited  to  retire, 
and  an  attendant  brought  a  fresh  outfit  of  brushes 
and  canvas  for  the  next.  Frequently  the  main  work 
on  these  portraits  was  given  to  his  students  to  com- 
plete, while  Van  Dyck  made  the  first  drawing,  and 
put  on  the  last  touches  himself.  This  enabled  him 
to  produce  such  numerous  portraits  in  a  given  sea- 
son. 

Van  Dyck  was  much  eulogized  after  his  death 
by  his  British  appreciators.  Abraham  Cowley 
writes : 

"  His  pieces  so  with  their  live  objects  strive 
That  both  or  pictures  seem,  or  both  alive ; 
Nature  herself  amazed  doth  doubting  stand. 
Which  is  her  own,  and  which  the  painter's  hand !  " 


CHAPTER    X. 

REMBRANDT   AND  SOME  OF   HIS    CONTEMPORARIES 

As  one  glances  about  for  a  general  impression 
among  the  Renibrandts  in  this  delightful  salon,  K, 
it  has  to  be  admitted  that  nearly  all  are  uniform  in 
tone.  One  is  less  struck  with  the  amazing  variety 
of  this  master  than  in  some  other  galleries.  The 
only  distinctly  bright  and  highly  coloured  specimen 
is  No.  1550,  the  gay  portrait  of  Rembrandt  with 
his  wife,  Saskia,  on  his  knee.  This  most  popular 
domestic  scene  is  very  lively,  and  shows  a  pleasant 
camaraderie  which  undoubtedly  existed  in  this  his 
first  and  happier  marriage.  The  question  of  his 
second  marriage  has  of  course  occasioned  discus- 
sion; his  life  with  Hendrickje  was  certainly  not 
ideal  from  the  point  of  view  of  ethics.  But  as  there 
are  no  portraits  of  Hendrickje  in  Dresden,  we  need 
not  specially  emphasize  this  phase  of  the  artist's 
career ! 

A  magician  in  light  and  shade:  that  is  Rem- 
brandt. Often  his  drawing  is  at  fault;  his  colour 
is  little  to  be  considered,  except  as  tone ;   he  knows 

286 


REMBRANDT.  REMBRANDT    AND    SASKIA 


IRembran^t  anC>  Contemporaries      287 

how  to  suffuse  a  whole  canvas  with  a  glowing  qual- 
ity of  gold  or  russet,  but  as  an  actual  colourist  he 
does  not  rank  among  the  first.  He  never  considers 
beauty  except  as  it  shall  result  from  his  wonderful 
disposition  of  shadows.  He  depicts  a  hideous  face 
and  body  with  greater  frequency  and  apparently 
with  greater  relish  than  a  beautiful  one.  Power  — 
gloom  —  depth  of  mystery  —  all  these  are  his 
tools,  and  he  handles  them  as  he  sees  fit. 

Many  of  his  so-called  portraits  are  perplexing, 
because  they  do  not  resemble  other  portraits  of  the 
same  characters;  in  other  words,  critics  have  had 
what  M.  Michel  calls  a  "  mania  for  identification," 
and  the  result  is  that  dozens  of  women's  portraits 
have  been  called  Saskia,  simply  because  his  wife 
was  named  Saskia;  and  a  sentimental  insistence 
upon  recognizing  her  in  every  face  he  painted  has 
governed  those  who  have  assigned  names  to  Rem- 
brandt's pictures.  No  wonder  our  idea  of  Saskia 
is  a  trifle  vague !  I  do  not  know  why  people  should 
suppose  that  an  artist  never  uses  but  one  model  any 
more  than  they  should  imagine  that  every  verse 
written  by  a  poet  reflects  some  personal  experience. 

We  do  humanity  an  injustice  when  we  claim  that 
all  Rembrandt's  nude  personages  are  realistic.  Only 
the  most  selected  types  of  ugliness  could  look  like 
some  of  them.  But  extremes  meet  in  this  dual  ar- 
tistic personality.     Complete  ugly  realism  vies  with 


288     XTbe  Hrt  of  tbe  H)res&en  Gallery 

imaginative  dreams,  as  may  be  seen  by  looking  first 
at  No.  1558,  Ganymede  and  the  eagle,  and  then  at 
1563,  the  Sacrifice  of  Manoah.  In  this  last,  to  be 
sure,  the  intentionally  visionary  part  of  the  picture 
is  less  poetic  and  delicate  than  the  human  figures. 

Rembrandt  Harmenz  van  Rijn  was  born  in  Ley- 
den  in  1606,  in  a  pleasant  street  looking  out  toward 
the  West,  with  only  the  moat  and  ramparts  of  the 
old  town  intervening  between  it  and  the  open  coun- 
try. The  events  of  his  childhood  are  obscure,  but 
it  is  known  that  his  father  was  a  prosperous  man, 
so  that  the  son's  youth  was  probably  uneventful, 
in  that  he  was  properly  educated  and  reared  in  a 
comfortable  home.  His  mother  was  a  good  Chris- 
tian, and.  gave  him  early  instruction  in  religious 
matters,  and  in  a  study  of  the  Bible. 

The  first  teacher  of  Rembrandt  in  his  artistic 
capacity  was  a  little-known  painter,  van  Swanen- 
burch.  This  elementary  instruction  must  have  been 
intelligent  and  thorough,  and  in  spite  of  the  fact  that 
Swanenburch  has  left  little  to  testify  to  his  aesthetic 
ability,  it  is  evident  that  he  had  to  a  considerable 
degree  the  pedagogic  faculty.  After  some  period  of 
study  with  various  masters  and  afterward  in  Rome, 
the  young  Rembrandt  returned  home  and  set  up 
for  himself,  as  a  chronicler  says,  "  to  study  and 
practise  painting  alone  and  in  his  own  way."  In 
1630,  although  he  was  still  a  beardless  youth,  his 


IRembrauDt  an^  Contemporaries      289 

fame  was  established.  We  have  no  example  here 
of  his  earliest  work,  but  the  first  pictures  which  hang 
in  Dresden  are  the  portrait  of  Willem  Burggraef, 
painted  in  1633,  and  a  portrait  of  his  wife,  Saskia, 
done  in  the  same  year. 

His  first  pupil,  Gerard  Dou,  came  to  him  in  1628, 
when  the  master  was  only  twenty-one.  About  three 
years  later,  Rembrandt  settled  in  Amsterdam,  where 
he  soon  fell  devotedly  in  love  with  the  congenial 
Saskia,  and  their  house  and  his  studio  became  a 
rendezvous  for  the  art-lovers  of  that  day.  Amster- 
dam was  the  great  Mecca  of  artists  in  1630  and 
thereabouts:  in  Evelyn's  Diary  for  1641  he  states 
that  it  is  "  certainly  the  most  busie  concourse  of 
mortals  now  upon  the  whole  earth,  and  the  most 
addicted  to  commerce."  Pupils  now  thronged  to 
study  with  Rembrandt;  Ferdinand  Bol,  Govaert 
Flinck,  Philips  Koninck,  Eeckhout,  Jan  Victors, 
and  many  others.  Each  of  these  students  paid  a 
hundred  florins  a  year  for  the  privilege  of  working 
with  the  greatest  living  master! 

Reports  were  spread  about  the  trials  of  Rem- 
brandt's life  with  Saskia:  as  is  nearly  always  the 
case  with  persons  in  a  conspicuous  social  position, 
there  were  plenty  of  aspiring  groundlings  who 
would  have  been  gratified  to  see  them  in  discom- 
fort. So  it  was  noised  abroad  that  his  wife  was 
very  extravagant,  and  that  she  had  dissipated  his 


290     Zbc  Brt  of  tbe  Dresden  Gailcv^ 

"  dot "  in  "  dress  and  ostentation."  But  there 
seems  to  be  no  further  evidence  that  these  reports 
had  foundation,  and  their  Hfe  together,  though  not 
long,  was  a  merry  one,  and  they  loved  each  other, 
perhaps  not  in  the  prudent  way  of  more  discreet 
and  elderly  people,  but  with  perfect  satisfaction  to 
themselves,  we  have  every  reason  to  believe!  The 
poor  girl  died  in  1642,  and  Rembrandt,  a  disconso- 
late widower,  began  an  early  deterioration;  for  the 
strength  of  his  character  was  not  of  sufficient  fibre 
to  be  led  by  suffering. 

Soon  after  this  the  general  dissatisfaction  which 
was  expressed  about  his  great  picture  known  as  the 
Night  Watch  (and  which  is  now  recognized  as  an 
afternoon  sortie  of  Banning  Cocq  and  his  Com- 
pany) also  discouraged  him,  and  made  him  a  little 
reckless. 

Dealing  with  his  pictures  in  Dresden  in  chrono- 
logical order,  the  next  in  date  was  the  painfully 
hideous  Infant  Ganymede,  in  1635.  Malcolm  Bell 
has  properly  described  Ganymede  in  this  picture  as 
"  blubbering  in  terror  as  he  is  howked  upward  .  .  . 
by  his  shirt-tail  in  the  claws  of  the  eagle !  "  About 
this  time  the  cheerful  portrait  of  Rembrandt  with 
Saskia  on  his  knee  was  painted.  The  face  of  the 
artist  is  certainly  not  flattered:  he  has  given  no 
ideal  touch  to  either  of  these  convivial  youngsters, 
who,  with  their  tall  wine-glasses  and  their  peacock 


IRembcan^t  an&  Contemporaries      291 

pasty,  are  enjoying  "  all  the  comforts  of  home." 
The  same  blunt-nosed,  good-natured  face  greets  us 
here  as  in  the  portrait  of  Saskia  as  a  laughing 
young  girl. 

The  beautiful  picture  of  Samson  Propounding 
the  Riddle  at  the  Wedding  Feast  —  a  large  and  im- 
portant work  —  was  the  principal  achievement  of 
Rembrandt  in  1638.  Apart  from  its  exquisite 
technique  and  charming  lighting,  it  is  not  remark- 
able, however,  as  a  composition,  and  is  not  a  con- 
tribution to  realistic  Scriptural  painting. 

The  Bittern  Shooter  followed  in  1639.  At  a 
first  glance  we  see  only  the  upheld  bittern;  one 
might  suppose  the  picture  intended  as  a  puzzle  — 
"  Find  the  shooter !  "  —  for  the  man  is  in  so  dense  a 
shadow  that  he  hardly  appears  at  all. 

Saskia's  portrait,  painted  in  1641,  is  to  be  seen  in 
the  panel  No.  1562:  the  girl  has  become  a  woman, 
and  a  more  serious  expression  is  to  be  detected  in 
her  eyes ;  she  had  only  another  year  to  live,  and 
was  probably  even  then  suffering  from  the  under- 
mining ill-health  which  so  soon  resulted  in  her 
death. 

In  this  same  year  was  executed  the  Dresden  pic- 
ture which  exhibits  much  more  poetic  and  religious 
feeling  than  is  usual  in  Rembrandt's  works,  the 
Sacrifice  of  Manoah  and  his  Wife.  The  two  main 
figures  are  treated  with  srreat  sentiment  and  tender- 


292    Zbc  Hrt  of  tbe  H)res&en  (Bailer^ 

ness,  and  not  without  conventional  beauty;  but  the 
phantom,  which  looks  for  all  the  world  like  a  short, 
stout  Dutch  monk,  if  one  could  find  such  a  thing, 
is  a  trying  anticlimax ! 

In  the  Old  Woman  Weighing  Gold  one  sees  the 
clear,  direct  treatment  which  afterward  became 
Rembrandt's  chief  heritage  to  his  scholars;  the  sa- 
lient points  only  are  touched  with  light,  allowing 
all  unimportant  details  to  be  lost  in  shadow.  It 
has  perfect  finish,  and  yet  it  is  not  "  finicky;  "  and, 
although  full  of  a  lively  worldly  sentiment,  it  has 
certain  soft,  dreamy  qualities  at  the  same  time. 

The  Portrait  of  an  Old  Man,  No.  1671,  is  a  mag- 
nificent study  of  age.  Among  the  younger  men 
who  appear  in  Rembrandt's  portraits  here  is  the 
Young  Warrior  in  Armour,  and  the  gentleman  in  a 
red  fur-trimmed  cap,  seated  in  a  chair.  This  last 
is  a  most  beautiful  profile,  the  only  light  in  the  pic- 
ture being  thrown  on  the  face.  There  is  some 
question  whether  this  portrait  may  not  be  by  Fabri- 
tius.  The  Entombment  is  only  a  studio  work 
touched  up  by  the  master,  the  original  being  in 
Munich. 

A  very  different  Rembrandt  is  seen  in  his  Por- 
trait of  himself  with  a  sketch-book.  No.  1569.  This 
was  a  sadder  and  probably  a  wiser  man  than  the 
youth  who  held  his  bride  on  his  knee:  it  was 
painted  in  1657. 


^    J 

Ib.^'k. 

I. 

I- 

L 

5 
»" 

1 

'^ 

■  .' 
■1 

IRembraiibt  auD  Contemporaries      293 

Specially  fine  is  the  Man  with  a  Pearl-trimmed 
Hat,  No.  1570,  most  decorative  and  ornate,  as  is 
also  the  Jewish  Rabbi,  wdiich  is,  however,  only  a 
copy  (perhaps  by  Koninck)  from  the  original  at 
Chatsworth. 

It  is  sad  to  trace  a  career  to  a  tragic  close,  but 
such  was  the  ending  of  the  great  master's  life.  A 
general  moral  decline  set  in :  he  became  involved 
in  a  love-affair  with  Hendrickje  Stoffels,  a  hand- 
some servant  whom  he  afterward  married;  he 
apparently  lost  all  grip  on  prudence  in  money  mat- 
ters, as  is  evidenced  by  records  of  a  sale  necessitat- 
ing the  dismembering  of  his  home  and  studio,  at 
which  time  his  pictures  and  engravings  were  all 
disposed  of  at  the  ridiculously  inadequate  sum  of 
five  hundred  florins.  It  is  also  possible  that  his 
sight  began  to  fail  him,  for  after  1661  he  made  no 
more  etchings,  and  his  portrait  heads  are  usually 
rather  larger  than  life.  In  the  death  records  of 
Amsterdam  occurs  this  passage :  "  Tuesday,  Octo- 
ber 8,  1669,  Rembrandt  van  Rijn,  Painter,  on  the 
Rozengracht,  opposite  the  Doolhof.  Leaves  two 
children."  The  great  artist  was  laid  to  rest  at  the 
foot  of  a  staircase  in  the  church,  but  when  the 
coffin  was  opened  some  years  ago,  there  were  no 
traces  of  his  remains.  This  is  all  that  we  know  of 
the  end.     Like  a  comet  which  blazes  through  the 


294     Zbc  Hrt  ot  tbe  H)resDen  Gallery 

night,  he  disappeared:  he  has  left  as  priceless  a 
heritage  as  any  painter  who  ever  lived. 

It  is  interesting  to  contrast  the  lives  and  work 
of  the  three  great  masters  of  technique  who  were 
so  far  in  advance  of  their  own  day,  —  Rubens, 
Rembrandt,  and  Velasquez,  Rubens,  great  in  ex- 
pressing the  joy  of  living  and  the  impersonal  sweep 
of  popular  ideals  in  great  decorative  masses :  Rem- 
brandt, great  in  holding  up  before  us  the  mystery 
and  romance  of  imagination  and  the  subtler 
thoughts  of  the  elect :  and  Velasquez,  who  combined 
both  these  qualities,  leaning  neither  to  the  romantic 
nor  to  the  realistic,  —  sane,  complete,  and  re- 
strained, a  past  master  in  the  use  of  pigment  and 
touch,  unsurpassed  in  composition  and  design. 

Before  leaving  the  hall  in  which  Rembrandt 
reigns,  one  must  stop  and  enjoy  the  pictures  which 
hang  here  by  some  of  his  followers. 

One  of  Rembrandt's  most  creditable  pupils  was 
Govaert  Flinck.  His  native  town  was  Cleves,  where 
he  was  born  in  1615.  He  is  one  of  the  few  artists 
with  whom  Rembrandt  exchanged  portraits.  His 
work  is  much  like  that  of  his  master.  In  the  strik- 
ing picture  of  David  giving  the  Letter  to  Uriah, 
he  is  seen  at  his  best,  the  gorgeous  yellow  of  the 
satin  robe  radiating  a  rich  glow  which  harmonizes 
the  whole.  Govaert  Flinck  died  in  Amsterdam  in 
1660. 


IRembranbt  ant)  Contemporaries      295 

Ferdinand  Bol's  Repose  on  the  Flight  into  Egypt 
is  an  unusual  composition,  in  lustrous  brown  tones. 
The  very  earthly  trait  of  extreme  physical  weariness 
is  here  the  chief  characteristic  of  Mary,  who  leans 
her  head  on  her  hand  as  if  greatly  tired  with  her 
journey,  while  the  charming  little  stiff  bundle  of 
a  very  human  sleeping  baby  lies  on  her  lap  like  any 
little  peasant. 

The  Jacob  before  Pharaoh  is  rather  exaggerated, 
and  too  yellow  throughout.  Jacob's  position  is  too 
menial,  and  Joseph  looks  too  much  the  proud  mon- 
arch. There  is  no  natural  human  response  from 
Pharaoh.  His  Jacob's  Dream  of  a  Ladder  Reach- 
ing to  Heaven  may  also  be  seen  here :  the  long 
stately  figure  of  the  angel  is  charming. 

Ferdinand  Bol's  own  portrait  by  his  own  hand 
hangs  in  the  fourteenth  cabinet;  it  is  No.  1606. 
The  effect  is  strikingly  Rembrandtesque  in  the  popu- 
lar sense.  This  clever  artist  was  a  close  follower 
of  Rembrandt;  he  was  born  in  Dordrecht  in  1616, 
but  painted  most  of  his  life  in  Amsterdam.  He  was 
the  first  to  enter  Rembrandt's  house  in  Amsterdam, 
where  he  lived  until  1680,  dying  in  that  year  a  very 
rich  man.  Some  critics  place  him  above  Van  der 
Heist,  second  only  to  the  master  himself.  These 
three  paintings  by  him  in  Dresden  display  his  genius 
at  its  full,  and  are  not  dwarfed  nor  overshadowed 


296     XTbe  Hrt  of  tbe  H)res^en  Gallery 

by  being  hung  in  the  same  room  with  Rembrandt's 
pictures. 

Another  follower  of  Rembrandt,  Salomon  Ko- 
ninck,  born  at  Amsterdam  in  1609,  is  represented 
by  two  delightful  pictures.  The  Hermit  Reading 
is  full  of  tender,  soft  grays  pervaded  by  a  golden 
glow,  while  the  Astronomer,  though  somewhat 
doubtful  in  attribution,  is  a  masterly  treatment  of 
a  virile  old  man  whose  intelligence  shines  on  his 
illumined  face. 

There  are  two  good  portraits  by  Van  der  Heist : 
one,  a  wife  of  the  Burgomaster  Bicker  of  Amster- 
dam, is  a  stately  presentment  of  a  conventional  lady 
of  Holland,  with  her  quilled  ruff  and  neatly  trimmed 
cap  and  cuffs.  The  handling  is  free.  The  other  is 
more  informal :  a  woman  looking  out  from  behind 
a  green  curtain.  This  is  a  vivid  and  striking  por- 
trait. As  has  been  said,  Sir  Joshua  Reynolds 
praised  the  work  of  Van  der  Heist. 

One  of  the  most  delightful  bits  of  cool  tone  is  the 
portrait  by  Ludolf  Leendertsz,  of  a  woman  holding 
her  little  daughter  by  the  hand.  The  daylight  in 
this  picture  is  unusually  clear,  and  the  child  is  a 
sweet  study  of  a  little  Dutch  lass  of  the  seventeenth 
century.  The  faces  are  full  of  vitality,  and  the 
action  and  pose,  especially  of  the  child,  bewitch- 
ing. 

Quite  interesting  is  the  Paris  and  QEnone  by  Jacob 


lRembran&t  anD  Contemporaries      297 

van  Loo,  who  was  a  pupil  of  his  father,  Jan  van 
Loo,  in  Paris,  where  Jacob  died  in  1670. 

Gerard  van  Honthorst,  a  much  admired  painter  of 
the  first  half  of  the  seventeenth  century,  was  gener- 
ally known  by  the  Italians  as  Gherardo  delle  Notti, 
owing  to  his  predilection  for  studies  by  night  and 
candle-light.  His  hideous  Dentist  hangs  here,  —  it 
is  too  corpselike,  and  unnecessarily  ghastly,  and  is 
enough  to  make  a  plucky  man  shudder!  Gerard  van 
Honthorst  was  a  native  of  Utrecht,  but  spent  much 
time  in  Italy.  Rubens  had  a  genuine  admiration  for 
him.  In  the  room  L  may  also  be  seen  two  of  his 
candle-light  studies.  Charles  I.  sent  for  Honthorst 
to  come  to  England,  where  he  painted  many  of  the 
nobility.  His  work  is  not  very  sympathetic,  how- 
ever, and  usually  lacks  beauty.  His  types  are  coarse, 
and  his  effects,  while  startling,  have  none  of  the 
charm  with  which  Rembrandt  knew  how  to  portray 
extremes  of  chiaroscuro. 

The  Child  and  Dwarf  with  a  Large  Dog,  by  Jan 
Fyt,  is  an  interesting  group.  Fyt  is  recognized  as 
one  of  the  greatest  animal  painters  of  the  Flemish 
school.  He  has  been  reported  as  an  assistant  of 
Rubens,  but  this  is  improbable,  as  he  was  only  fif- 
teen at  the  time  of  Rubens's  death.  The  pretty 
child  forms  a  sort  of  scale  by  which  the  spectator 
may  judge  of  the  extreme  size  of  the  dog  and  the 
unusual  diminutiveness  of  the  dwarf.     He  seems  a 


298     XTbe  Hrt  of  tbe  Bresben  Gallery 

link,  a  human  standard  of  the  normal  in  proportion. 
This  picture  is  in  Hall  J,  with  the  Rubens. 

Another  painter  of  note  in  this  hall  is  Jacob  Jor- 
daens,  of  whom  several  examples  may  be  seen.  A 
contemporary  of  Rubens  and  a  pupil  of  Van  Noort, 
his  pictures  demonstrate  still  farther  how  much 
Rubens  derived  from  his  early  master,  for  Jor- 
daens's  pictures  are  frequently  taken  for  Peter 
Paul's,  and  yet  Jordaens  was  not  a  pupil  of  Rubens. 
This  proves  that  the  source  of  influence  was  the 
same  for  both.  Jordaens's  paintings  are  all  very 
large,  and  hang  in  the  hall  with  Rubens's  pictures. 

The  Ariadne  and  Bacchus  is  loathsome.  All  the 
grossness  of  Rubens  is  emphasized  in  Jordaens. 
Not  much  religious  sentiment  has  crept  into  the 
Presentation  in  the  Temple,  and,  to  make  a  tech- 
nical criticism,  the  feet  of  the  kneeling  figure  in  the 
foreground  are  inexcusably  badly  drawn.  The 
cheerful  genre  picture,  "  As  the  Old  Birds  sang,  so 
the  Young  ones  Pipe,"  is  amusing,  and  painted  in 
pleasant  tones,  but  there  is  a  certain  lack  of  real 
humour  in  the  fact  that  the  two  children  are  shown 
as  literally  playing  on  little  pipes !  The  family  is 
seated,  gathered  about  a  table.  The  elders  are 
making  merry,  and  two  of  them  are  singing.  This 
very  unimaginative  treatment  of  the  text  is  curi- 
ously devoid  of  ingenuity. 

Perhaps  the  best  of  Jordaens's  achievements  is  his 


IRembran^t  anC)  Contemporaries      299 

Diogenes  Looking  for  an  Honest  Man.  The  philos- 
opher is  making  his  way  through  the  crowded 
market-place,  holding  aloft  his  lantern  and  wearing 
no  clothing  excepting  a  cloth  about  his  loins.  Every 
one  is  laughing  at  him,  with  the  rollicking,  good- 
natured  mirth  with  which  a  crowd  usually  greets  a 
"  crank."  The  venders  of  fruits  and  vegetables  are 
laughing  broadly;  a  boy  politely  salutes  Diogenes 
with  his  thumb  raised  to  his  nose ;  the  older  people 
smile  tolerantly,  and  one  fat,  absurd-looking  person, 
with  proper,  modern  eye-glasses  on  his  nose,  puckers 
his  brow  in  an  effort  to  imagine  what  on  earth  the 
philosopher  means !  This  picture  is  replete  with 
humour,  and  repays  close  observation.  It  is  magnif- 
icently handled,  too. 

No.  847  is  a  portrait  by  Anton  Mor.  Morelli 
asks  humble  pardon  for  having  ever  taken  this  pic- 
ture for  a  Moroni,  even  at  a  distance.  He  says  that 
his  mistake  was  wholly  inexcusable,  for  the  paint- 
ing is  undeniably  Flemish.  One  respects  the  spirit 
of  a  true  "  sport,"  when  a  critic  so  clever  as  Morelli 
is  willing  to  come  forth  manfully  and  acknowledge 
an  error.  It  gives  one  additional  confidence  in  his 
judgment. 

The  extremely  unattractive  but  beautifully  exe- 
cuted still-life  pieces  of  Jan  Weenix  are  displayed  in 
all  their  inordinate  detail.  Why  a  man  who  could 
paint  as  accurately  and  as  finely  as  Weenix  should 


300     XTbe  Brt  ot  tbe  Dresden  Gallery 

select  a  dead  hare,  a  dead  deer,  and  a  dead  cock, 
through  which  to  express  himself,  passes  under- 
standing. Here  we  have  a  large  canvas  covered 
with  work  which  would  be  creditable  in  a  miniature, 
and  the  result,  —  a  rabbit  hanging  in  a  most  un- 
gainly way  by  one  leg,  surrounded  by  small  di- 
shevelled game  and  the  implements  of  the  chase,  set 
against  a  background  of  an  extremely  ornate  vase 
and  a  profusion  of  flowers,  —  how  uninteresting 
these  masterpieces  are!  Of  all  aesthetic  specialists, 
those  with  whom  I  can  least  enter  into  a  sympathetic 
understanding  are  the  painstaking  purveyors  of  still 
life  and  dead  birds! 

That  enormous  and  busy  scene,  the  Great  Bear 
Hunt,  is  uncertain  in  its  ascription.  It  is  by  some 
pronounced  to  be  a  work  of  Snyders,  and  by  others 
to  be  painted  by  Paul  de  Vos.  It  is  rather  a  speci- 
men of  Dutch  than  Flemish  art,  but  the  point  of 
authorship  has  not  been  decided. 

It  is  strange  how  generations  of  critics  will  pass 
over  the  work  of  a  great  painter  until  one,  more 
truly  cultured  than  the  rest,  with  a  more  trained  vis- 
ion and  a  better  judgment,  rises  to  pronounce  him  a 
genius,  and  thus  raise  the  fashion  for  his  works.  Art 
ought  to  be  quite  independent  of  fashion,  but  this  is 
unfortunately  not  the  case.  A  notable  example  of 
this  feature  in  critical  appreciation  is  Vermeer  of 
Delft.  In  his  own  day  he  was  famous :  technically  he 


IRembranbt  an^  Contemporaries      3^1 

was  a  great  artist ;  and  yet  for  nearly  two  centuries 
his  name  was  practically  forgotten,  many  of  his 
works  were  assigned  to  Pieter  de  Hooch,  and  the  rest 
overlooked.  Until  M.  Thore,  writing  under  the  pseu- 
donym of  W.  Burger,  took  up  the  search  for  facts 
about  Vermeer  of  Delft,  there  was  hardly  anything 
known  of  his  history ;  and  this  period  of  silence  had 
made  it  difficult  to  discover  data  which  would  have 
been  more  available  a  century  earlier.  The  actual 
bare  facts  are  all  that  are  known :  his  birth  was  in 
Delft  in  1632;  in  1654,  at  the  age  of  twenty-two, 
he  was  already  a  recognized  painter  in  good  stand- 
ing, for  his  name  was  on  the  books  of  the  Guild  of 
St.  Luke  as  a  Master.  It  is  evident,  however,  that 
he  was  poor,  for  he  was  obliged  to  pay  his  entrance 
fee  of  six  florins  in  instalments.  He  had  married  at 
twenty-one,  in  spite  of  his  poverty.  In  1662  he  was 
elected  Dean  of  the  Guild,  which  honour  was  re- 
peated in  1670.  These  facts  show  that  his  local 
fame  was  high.  An  art  lover  of  that  period  writes 
that  he  went  to  see  Vermeer  in  1663,  and  that  the 
artist  had  not  a  single  picture  to  show,  every  stroke 
of  his  brush  having  sold;  the  connoisseur  was 
obliged  to  go  and  see  the  pictures  at  the  homes  of 
the  owners.  That  his  fortunes  improved  with  age 
and  fame  is  proved  by  his  portrait  of  himself  in 
his  studio,  which  is  now  in  \^ienna.  He  paints  him- 
self dressed   in  the  prevailing  style,   in   expensive 


302     Zbc  Hrt  of  tbe  2)res&en  (Ballerg 

materials,  working  in  a  studio  with  a  well-tiled  floor 
and  hung  with  tapestries  and  brocades  and  well 
furnished.  As  if  to  perplex  us  further  as  to  his 
personality,  the  perverse  Vermeer  has  left  us  only 
this  one  likeness  of  himself,  and  that  is  only  his 
back  view !  So  one  can  form  no  idea  at  all  of  his 
appearance  beyond  the  broad  Dutch  build,  and  a 
shock  of  hair! 

It  is  supposed  that  Vermeer  was  a  pupil  of  Fabri- 
tius.  The  circumstances  of  his  death  are  not 
known;  but  in  1675,  in  the  full  tide  of  his  success, 
the  records  show  that  he  died  in  Delft.  He  was 
forty-three  years  of  age,  and  left  eight  children. 
His  burial  took  place  in  the  Old  Qiurch  in  that,  his 
native  city. 

The  Dresden  gallery  is  unique  in  possessing  the 
only  life-sized  picture  ever  executed  by  Vermeer. 
In  fact,  both  of  his  paintings  in  this  collection  are 
interesting  as  being  quite  uncharacteristic,  and  yet 
both  singularly  fine  works,  showing  that  he  had  not 
only  one  manner,  or  one  prevailing  scheme  of  col- 
our, as  some  writers  are  apt  to  assume. 

The  large  picture  of  the  Girl  and  her  Lover  is 
the  first  to  greet  us,  as  it  should,  it  being  an  early 
work.  It  is  one  of  his  first  productions,  in  fact. 
Vermeer  is  especially  famous  for  what  is  known 
as  his  "  moonlight  blue,"  combined  with  lemon  yel- 
low.   This  picture  has  none  of  the  cool  quality  sug- 


VERMEER    OF    DELFT.  —  A    GIRI.    AND    HFR    FOVER 


IRembranDt  an&  Contemporaries      3°3 

gested  by  his  habitual  combination.  It  is  of  an 
exactly  opposite  tone.  If  a  man  were  to  set  him- 
self the  task  of  painting  a  picture  from  the  compo- 
nent parts  of  fire,  —  the  blaze,  the  smoke,  and  the 
purple  concentrated  spots  here  and  there,  he  could 
not  plan  a  more  symbolic  colour  scheme  than  this 
to  typify  the  element  of  flame.  The  characteristic 
lemon  yellow  of  Vermeer  is  seen  in  the  bodice  of 
the  girl,  who,  holding  a  glass  of  wine  in  one  hand, 
extends  the  other  to  receive  a  coin  which  is  being 
offered  by  a  blustering  fellow  whose  scarlet  coat 
comes  in  direct  contact  with  the  crude  yellow.  His 
gray  hat  tops  his  head,  as  a  little  gray  smoke  would 
rise  above  a  lurid  blaze  such  as  this.  A  smouldering 
red  and  yellow  scheme,  on  gray,  is  seen  below,  in 
a  Persian  rug  which  is  cast  across  the  balcony-rail- 
ing in  the  foreground.  An  old  woman  bends 
eagerly  forward  to  see  if  the  bribe  is  about  to  be 
accepted,  and  seems  to  rejoice  in  an  evil  way  upon 
observing  the  girl's  outstretched  hand  and  smiling 
face.  She  is  in  black;  a  cinder,  as  it  were,  in  the 
midst  of  a  conflagration.  The  subject  is  not  a 
pleasant  one,  but  it  is  treated  by  a  master,  and  there 
is  much  underlying  thought  in  this  suggestive  dis- 
position of  colours.  The  smoky  background  is  ap- 
propriate, and  no  criticism  can  be  offered  regarding 
the  technique.  The  flashily  dressed  lute-player  on 
the  left,  in  his  dashing  black  and  white  costume. 


304     Ube  Hrt  of  tbe  H)re6&en  Gallery 

and  with  his  leering  expression,  may  be  regarded  as 
the  bellows  fanning  the  flame.  No  one  so  far  as 
I  know  has  given  Vermeer  credit  for  suggesting 
this  elemental  conception,  but  it  seems  to  be  a  justi- 
fiable interpretation  of  the  colour  scheme,  which  is 
so  unusual  for  this  painter.  The  picture  is  over 
four  feet  square.  As  is  fitting  for  so  large  a  canvas, 
the  treatment  is  broader  than  in  most  of  Vermeer's 
work,  and  the  sharp  red  and  yellow,  harmonious  in 
spite  of  their  primitive  rawness,  are  laid  in  broad, 
daring  masses. 

Instead  of  beginning  by  painting  small  pictures, 
and  gradually  branching  out  into  a  larger  size,  Ver- 
meer began  by  treating  his  subjects  on  a  large  scale, 
and  refining  his  handling  afterward,  so  that  he 
never,  even  in  his  tiniest  cabinet  pieces,  lost  a  certain 
breadth  of  feeling  which  makes  his  pictures  power- 
ful in  spite  of  their  minuteness. 

Some  writers  have  called  attention  to  the  likeness 
between  Vermeer  and  Rembrandt;  but  Vermeer's 
theory  of  lighting  is  exactly  opposite  to  that  of 
Rembrandt.  This  divergence  in  their  conceptions 
of  light  seems  to  make  such  a  theory  unfounded. 
Rembrandt  nearly  always  painted  with  a  dark  back- 
ground. Objects  were  placed  against  this,  and  the 
surface  and  salient  points  nearest  the  spectator  il- 
luminated. The  effect  was  light  in  darkness.  Ver- 
meer is  more  liable  to  paint  a  light  background. 


"IRembranDt  ant)  Contemporaries      305 

illuminated  from  the  side,  with  his  figures  compara- 
tively in  shadow  silhouetted  against  it,  in  a  dark 
foreground,  —  practically  shadow  in  light.  Again, 
Vermeer  has  been  likened  to  Pieter  de  Hooch;  so 
much  so  that  many  of  his  works  were  given  to  De 
Hooch.  There  were  differences  just  as  marked  as 
those  between  Vermeer  and  Rembrandt,  however, 
and  it  may  be  well  to  observe  them,  since  it  makes 
our  enjoyment  of  both  the  keener  when  we  have 
these  points  called  to  our  attention.  While  De 
Hooch  frequently  used  the  light  background  with 
the  same  effect  as  Vermeer,  he  nearly  always  painted 
a  room  in  conscientious  perspective,  showing  part 
of  the  floor  and  the  ceiling,  while  Vermeer  usually 
selected  a  corner,  with  neither  floor  nor  ceiling  vis- 
ible, but  generally  with  a  window  as  a  means  of 
letting  in  a  flood  of  light,  which  he  hardly  ever 
omitted.  Also,  De  Hooch  painted  genre  of  a  humble 
sort,  as  a  rule,  —  good  little  "  hausf raus,"  with 
bustling  w^ays  of  neat  care-taking;  cosy  scenes  of 
middle-class  life.  Vermeer  selected  more  often  the 
aristocratic  and  elegant  subjects  (the  picture  just 
described  is  one  of  the  rare  exceptions  to  this  rule), 
and  his  ladies  are  usually  well  gowned.  One  would 
go  far  before  finding  another  Vermeer  depicting  low 
life  like  that  in  his  large  early  picture  in  Dresden. 
Vermeer  had  a  wonderful  versatility  in  technique. 
His  large  painting  here  is  smooth  and  oily;   beauti- 


3o6     XTbe  Hrt  of  tbe  H)res&en  Gallery 

fully  liquid  and  glossy,  so  that  one  longs  to  pass 
one's  fingers  over  the  glassy  surface,  though  the 
detail  is  not  worked  up  nor  belittled. 

In  tracing  the  pupils  and  direct  followers  of  Rem- 
brandt, it  will  be  necessary  to  go  through  the  long 
line  of  cabinets  in  which  the  smaller  Dutch  pictures 
hang,  and,  as  they  are  scattered  without  any  special 
plan,  it  will  be  more  satisfactory  to  mention  these 
artists  as  we  normally  come  upon  them,  instead  of 
skipping  from  cabinet  to  cabinet  in  search  of  iso- 
lated pictures,  and  then  returning  to  examine  others. 
In  this  expedition  we  shall  come  across,  in  its  place, 
the  other  example  of  Vermeer  of  Delft. 


CHAPTER   XL 


DUTCH    PAINTERS 


In  Dutch  art  the  subject  is  secondary.  A  casual 
g"lance  at  the  names  of  Dutch  pictures,  taken  at 
random  in  any  gallery,  suffices  to  show  how  little 
attention  was  paid  to  the  story  told  by  the  picture; 
how  everything  depended  upon  the  chiaroscuro,  the 
perspective,  the  handling,  and  the  curious  concave 
effect  which  pervades  these  little  correct  gems  of 
execution;  that  quality  which  allows  you  to  look 
into  and  almost  through  the  composition.  Take 
the  Dresden  collection,  for  instance :  what  are  the 
subjects?  "Landscape  with  Four  Naked  Men;" 
"  An  old  Woman  with  a  Candle  in  her  Hand ;  "  "  A 
Glass  of  Wine  in  a  Stone  Niche,  surrounded  by  a 
Wreath  of  Flowers;  "  "  Still  Life  with  a  Lobster;  " 
"  A  Fish  Stall ;  "  "  Still  Life  with  a  Poem  in  Praise 
of  the  Herring;  "  "  Fruit  and  Oysters  with  Orange 
Blossoms ;  "  "  Collision  between  a  Horseman  and  a 
Peasant's  Cart ;  "  "  A  Wagon  with  a  white  Horse 
Kicking;"  "An  xMchemist  smelling  a  Bottle;" 
"  Cavalry  Fight  with  some  Men  hanging  on  Trees 

307 


3o8     Zbc  Hrt  ot  tbe  2)res&en  (Bailer^ 

in  the  Middle  Distance;  "  "  Bust  of  a  Blue-eyed  Gen- 
tleman with  Hair  turning  gray;"  "Plants  with 
Insects  and  other  Creatures,  among  them  a  Toad." 
It  is  out  of  all  proportion  to  quote  so  many  of  these 
eccentricities,  but  as  this  is  the  only  mention  that 
will  be  made  of  many  of  these  works  of  art,  we  must 
be  pardoned  if  we  add  a  few  more  specimens :  "  A 
drove  of  Pigs  near  an  Oak  Forest;  "  "  Sheep,  Cat- 
tle, and  the  Artist,  among  Ruins;"  "Fruit-piece 
with  a  Stag  Beetle;"  and  "A  Pond  with  Ducks 
and  other  Birds  upon  it."  It  shows  how  little  the 
Dutch  cared  what  they  were  regarding  when  they 
looked  upon  a  picture,  provided  that  it  was  well 
rendered.  There  is  no  effort  made  to  portray  his- 
toric scenes :  even  the  possibilities  of  contemporary 
history  are  overlooked,  and  a  choice  is  made  instead 
from  among  the  absolutely  domestic  scenes  of  pri- 
vate life.  The  very  breakfast-table,  in  the  disorder 
of  a  finished  repast,  was  considered  a  sufficient  ex- 
cuse for  a  cabinet  picture;  a  bunch  of  flowers  was 
regarded  as  a  scene,  and  the  advent  of  a  snail  among 
them  as  an  episode.  The  one  thing  demanded  of 
a  Dutch  painter  was  that  his  work  should  bear  the 
closest  inspection :  it  was  to  be  studied  in  the  bou- 
doir, by  the  dim  light  which  filtered  in  through 
shuttered  windows ;  it  must  stand  the  test  of  the 
lorgnette  and  the  most  critical  scrutiny ;  but  it  need 
not  cause  an  emotion  or  awaken  a  thought  beyond 


Dutcb  painters  309 

the  curiosity  of  the  beholder  in  wondering  how  it 
was  ever  possible  to  accomplish  its  technical  perfec- 
tion !  As  Fromentin  has  aptly  remarked,  "  Drink- 
ing, smoking,  and  kissing  maids  cannot  be  called 
very  rare  or  attractive  incidents." 

In  other  words,  Dutch  pictures  entirely  lack  plot. 
Never,  until  the  very  different  reaction  among  the 
realists  in  the  late  nineteenth  century,  was  there 
such  a  dearth  of  incident  in  art.  Treating  these 
pictures,  then,  in  the  spirit  in  which  they  were  pro- 
duced, we  must  approach  them  without  expecting 
emotions  or  ideas,  simply  as  wonderful  achieve- 
ments of  the  craft  of  the  painter,  small,  intimate, 
often  pleasant,  sometimes  stupid,  but  invariably  neat 
as  a  Dutch  housewife. 

The  public  sale  of  paintings  in  markets  was  cus- 
tomary in  Holland  as  well  as  in  Spain.  As  is  well 
known,  Murillo's  early  talents  were  turned  toward 
these  pictures  for  the  "  feria."  In  Evelyn's  Diary 
we  find  a  passage,  written  in  1641,  mentioning  the 
"  annual  marte  or  faire  "  in  Rotterdam,  "  so  fur- 
nished with  pictures,  especially  landscapes  and  droll- 
eries, as  they  call  those  clounish  representations, 
that  I  was  amazed."  Naturally  this  profusion  of 
paintings  made  household  decoration  quite  lavish : 
another  traveller  tells  that  "  the  interior  of  Dutch 
houses  is  yett  more  rich  than  their  outside;  not  in 
hangings,  but  in  pictures,  which  the  poorest  there 


3IO     XTbe  Brt  ot  tbe  2)res&en  Galleri? 

are  furnished  with-all,  not  a  cobbler  but  hath  his 
toyes  for  ornament."  Sometimes  it  seems  to  have 
been  considered  a  courtesy  for  artists  to  introduce 
into  their  paintings  of  interiors,  tiny  reproductions 
of  well-known  pictures  by  their  contemporaries.  In 
one  of  Jan  Steen's  pictures  in  Berlin  there  occurs 
Frans  Hals's  "  Drinker,"  hung  high  on  the  wall, 
and  in  one  of  Pieter  de  Hooch's  interiors  there  is 
to  be  seen  a  representation  of  one  of  Ter  Borch's 
cabinet  pictures.  Hogarth  also  adopted  this  idea 
in  England,  and  has  often  introduced  famous  pic- 
tures hanging  on  the  walls  of  the  apartments  which 
he  portrayed. 

Philips  Wouwermans's  pictures  hang  in  all  these 
cabinets,  distributed  here  and  there.  His  works  do 
not  attract  the  eye,  although  many  of  them  are 
interesting  when  examined.  His  Stable  at  an  Inn, 
No.  1424,  has  a  spacious,  dark,  cavernlike  fore- 
ground, looking  out  into  the  light;  a  white  horse 
very  properly  stands  in  relief  before  a  dark  wall, 
while  a  black  horse  and  rider  are  silhouetted  against 
the  light  horizon.  It  is  interesting  to  compare  his 
Hunters  Going  to  the  Chase  and  another  picture 
called  the  Return  from  Hunting.  In  the  first.  No. 
1440,  one  sees  the  active  spirit  of  the  morning,  with 
the  brisk  horses  and  men  and  dogs;  in  the  latter, 
No.  1439,  the  evening  glow,  the  tired  and  relaxed 
steeds,  and  the  thirsty  dogs,  drinking  at  the  foun- 


2)utcb  painters  31 1 

tain.  Wouwermans's  battle  pieces  in  this  gallery 
are  famous.  One  of  them,  No.  1463,  is  much  en- 
hanced by  the  introduction  of  a  burning  windmill, 
which  gives  a  counter  interest  and  an  unusual  light- 
ing to  the  cavalry  charge  which  forms  the  main 
subject.  There  is  fine  action  in  the  figure  near  the 
centre,  a  man  on  horseback,  mounted  on  a  noble 
charger  like  one  described  by  a  Spanish  author  as 
"  not  so  thin  lady-like  as  the  Barb,  nor  so  gross  as 
the  Neapolitan,  but  between  both."  This  picture 
should  be  noticed  in  Cabinet  15. 

The  grouping  of  his  pictures  is  always  good. 
This  feature  is  sometimes  overlooked  because  it  is 
not  conspicuous,  but  there  are  few  artists  who  have 
turned  out  so  many  uniformly  excellent  pieces  of 
proportion  in  composition.  Industrious  and  facile, 
and  gifted  with  an  even,  reliable  talent,  he  has  exe- 
cuted a  great  number  of  pictures,  without  taking 
the  first  rank  as  a  genius.  There  are  over  sixty  of 
his  works  in  Dresden.  A  detailed  account  of  them 
would  be  out  of  place  in  a  volume  of  this  size.  It 
used  to  be  almost  assumed  that  any  picture  with 
several  figures,  in  which  a  white  horse  was  promi- 
nent, must  be  by  Wouwermans.  But  this  theory 
was  of  course  not  long-lived.  Wouwermans  is  not 
a  landscape  painter  pure  and  simple;  he  is  not  a 
figure  painter;  nor  yet  is  he  primarily  an  animal 
painter ;  but  in  all  three  in  combination  he  is  excel- 


312     ube  art  of  tbe  2)resC)en  Galleri? 

lent.  There  is  no  special  weakness  which  has  to  be 
overlooked,  his  landscapes,  figures,  and  animals  are 
all  equally  acceptable. 

Wouwermans  was  a  native  of  Haarlem,  born  in 
1 6 19,  and  studied  with  his  father  and  Wynants, 
until  such  time  as  he  chose  to  elope  with  a  young 
lady,  after  which  he  stayed  for  awhile  in  Hamburg. 
Upon  his  return  he  became  a  member  of  the  Guild 
in  1640.  He  lived  to  be  only  forty-nine  years  old, 
dying  in  1668.  No  contemporary  artist  has  left 
so  large  a  stock  of  works  behind  him.  Each  picture 
has  in  it  some  definite  episode.  It  may  be  of  a 
trifling  nature,  but  it  is  always  a  reason  for  the 
selection  of  the  subject.  Of  these  works  there  re- 
main over  seven  hundred.  His  Scriptural  subjects 
are  very  rare.  In  Dresden  may  be  seen  two,  the 
Angels  Appearing  to  the  Shepherds,  No.  141 1,  and 
the  Preaching  of  the  Baptist,  No.  1466. 

It  is  supposed  that  three  styles  may  be  detected 
in  Wouwermans's  works :  that  his  early  works  are 
generally  warm  and  russet  in  tone,  his  middle  pro- 
ductions less  so,  and  his  mature  work  quite  silvery 
and  full  of  daylight.  To  judge  of  the  value  of  this 
theory,  one  would  have  to  know  the  dates  of  the 
various  pictures.  The  Glad  Tidings  is  early;  but 
the  others,  not  being  dated,  are  not  easily  classified, 
except  by  taking  this  as  a  premise,  and  deciding 
their  epochs  by  their  tones. 


VAN    DER    WERFF.  EXPULSION    OF    HAGAR 


Dutcb  painters  313 

The  oily,  slippery  gleam  of  Van  der  Werff's  pic- 
tures greets  us  in  the  seventh  cabinet.  Smooth 
skins,  enamelled  complexions,  velvety  grass,  and 
shimmering  satins,  a  mellifluous  overbloom  of  pink 
Dresden  china  rustics :  these  are  the  things  which' 
delight  Van  der  Werff.  What  could  be  less  like  an 
amorous  shepherd  and  his  lass  than  these  two  coy, 
silky  smirkers  in  an  exotic  arbour,  in  No.  1812? 
What  less  like  the  Expulsion  of  Hagar  (except 
Jan  Steen's  treatment  of  the  same  theme)  than  the 
graceful  Greek  ballet-girl  saying  a  fluttering  adieu 
to  the  benign  Apostolic  gentleman  in  the  strong 
light,  in  No.  1822?  Another  smooth,  sleek  captiva- 
tor  is  his  Venus,  who  sits  in  a  careless  attitude  on 
a  bank,  coquettishly  glancing  out  at  the  spectator 
while  she  divests  herself  of  the  last  folds  of  a  Lib- 
erty scarf !  All  is  honey-sweet  —  would  be  beau- 
tiful decoration  on  a  box  of  fine  confectionery. 
Many  others  hang  here,  but  they  are  rather  cloying, 
although  exquisitely  rendered.  The  Judgment  of 
Paris  is  decidedly  pretty :  the  figures  are  faultlessly 
elastic  and  buoyant,  the  hands  and  arms  being  so 
extravagantly  graceful  that  they  are  perilously  near 
to  being  affected.  Sweetly  insipid,  they  are  adapted 
to  please  the  people  whose  mental  grasp  is  satisfied 
by  Bouguereau  and  Carlo  Dolci.  Not  that  I  mean 
to  give  the  impression  that  either  of  these  artists 
is  not  greater  than  Van  der  Werff;    but  the  t}-pe 


314    Ube  Brt  ot  tbe  H)l*es^en  Oaller^ 

of  satisfaction  is  of  the  same  order,  Adriaen  Van 
der  Werff  was  born  near  Rotterdam  in  1659,  and 
lived  until  1722,  —  well  into  the  decadence.  A  por- 
trait of  him  may  be  seen  in  No.  1813.  His  wife, 
a  brisk,  dressy  individual,  is  seated  at  the  left,  while 
the  three  well-clad  children  are  apparently  giving 
an  informal  concert  on  the  other  side.  They  appear 
to  be  singing,  while  one,  holding  a  flat  shell  and  a 
paint-brush,  is  probably  intended  to  suggest  heredi- 
tary talent.  Behind  them,  towering  in  a  sort  of 
satin  toga  carelessly  slung  about  him,  and  with  a 
knotted  scarf  at  his  throat,  is  the  magnificent  and 
bombastic  painter  himself,  —  he  looks  just  as  one 
expects  him  to. 

Hermann  Saftleven,  an  artist  of  Rotterdam  and 
Utrecht,  is  the  author  of  several  inconspicuous  land- 
scapes in  these  rooms.  One  of  the  uninteresting 
pictures  of  the  class  of  which  we  have  spoken  is 
Still  life  with  a  Kingfisher,  supposed  to  be  by  Hon- 
decoeter,  but  of  questioned  authenticity.  In  No.  9 
are  several  pictures  with  landscape  tendencies  by  a 
pupil  of  Polenburgh,  Johannes  van  Haensbergen. 
In  the  realistic  Dutch  character  are  An  Oyster 
Breakfast  and  Dead  Game  with  a  Partridge  and  a 
Bulfinch,  by  Willem  von  Aelst. 

Here  may  be  seen  a  rather  decadent  composition 
by  Sperling,  a  pupil  of  Van  der  Werff,  representing 
Vertumnus  come  in  the  disguise  of  an  old  woman 


Dutcb  painters  s^s 

to  persuade  Pomona.  The  idea  is  not  strictly  pleas- 
ant ;  the  gloating  hag,  with  her  hand  on  her  heart, 
seems  to  be  taking  a  mean  advantage  of  the  ingenu- 
ous Pomona,  who,  not  suspecting  the  sex  of  her 
visitor,  has  not  troubled  herself  to  disguise  her  own 
nudity. 

The  pretty  little  pictures  of  Frans  van  Mieris  are 
scattered  about  in  all  the  rooms  so  that  they  must 
be  noticed  at  various  times  on  a  tour  through  the 
gallery,  but  it  is  better  to  treat  of  them  all  together. 
Frans  van  Mieris  was  a  pupil  of  Dou,  and  was 
bom  in  Leyden  (some  say  Delft)  in  1635.  His 
father  was  a  lapidary,  who  would  have  been  glad 
of  his  son  in  his  own  trade,  as  was  the  customary 
expectation  of  Dutch  fathers,  but  the  boy  soon 
proved  himself  adapted  to  a  more  exalted  art. 
Never  an  intellectual  painter,  not  attempting  such 
expression  as  Ter  Borch  nor  such  intuition  as  Steen, 
Mieris  was  a  charming  purveyor  of  pleasant  scenes, 
suitable  for  drawing-room  decoration ;  gallants, 
ladies,  rich  stuffs,  and  all  the  paraphernalia  of  the 
well-to-do  homes  of  Holland.  These  cabinet  bits 
naturally  became  very  popular,  and  his  rather  sugary 
style  was  much  applauded  by  those  who  were  tired 
of  seeing  peasants  and  tavern-brawlers  at  every 
turn.  His  courtly  little  studio  pictures  in  Dresden, 
1750,  the  artist  painting  a  lady's  portrait,  and 
the  Connoisseur  in  the  Artist's  Studio,  No.   1751, 


3i6     Zhc  Hrt  of  tbe  S)res&en  Gallery 

are  hung  in  the  eleventh  room,  and  give  a  good 
idea  of  the  appearance  of  this  painter  in  his  environ- 
ment. Mieris  was  reputed  to  be  a  rather  hard  liver : 
he  was  a  friend  of  Steen,  and  undoubtedly  spent 
many  evenings  at  Steen's  tavern  in  company  with 
his  friends.  There  is  a  legend  that  he  caught  his 
death  from  tumbling  into  the  canal  one  night  on  his 
way  home  when  under  the  influence  of  liquor,  but 
this  report  is  not  vouched  for  by  any  very  indubi- 
table historian.  His  Soldier  Smoking  is  a  delight- 
fully lazy  and  casual  composition;  the  man  seems 
easy  and  well-bred  beside  the  average  Dutch  smok- 
ers which  one  meets  in  art ! 

The  Lute  Player  with  her  Teacher  is  a  very  at- 
tractive painting;  the  detail  is  exquisite,  and  the 
quality  and  texture  of  the  changeable  red  and  yellow 
jacket  of  the  lady  must  have  been  a  source  of  de- 
light to  the  fair  connoisseurs  of  Holland.  The 
Young  Woman  receiving  a  love-letter,  too,  is  very 
pleasing.  Mieris  is  obvious,  and  not  as  piquant  as 
the  painters  who  seem  to  have  some  better  reason 
for  producing  a  picture  than  simply  to  provide  an 
acceptable  parlour  ornament. 

The  Jolly  Toper  in  an  Arched  Window,  by 
Willem  van  Mieris  the  younger,  son  and  pupil  of 
Frans  van  Mieris,  is  to  be  seen  here.  There  is 
rather  a  degeneration,  however,  from  his  father's 
work.     There  are  many  examples  here  of  Willem 


Dutcb  {painters  317 

van  Mieris,  the  best  perliaps  being  the  Young  Man 
with  a  Hurdy-gurdy  resting,  while  a  girl  brings 
him  wine,  No.  1766,  in  which  the  detail  is  capital, 
and  the  tones  clear. 

A  striking  gray  sea  piece,  the  waves  being  re- 
markably well  painted,  is  the  Storm  on  a  Rocky 
Coast,  by  Simon  de  Vlieger.  It  is  in  the  eighth  cab- 
inet. No.  1552,  in  the  eleventh  cabinet,  is  a  study  of 
moonlight  on  a  river  brink,  by  Aert  van  der  Neer. 
The  trees  and  little  church  are  almost  as  silhouettes 
against  the  sky,  and  the  effect  is  charming. 

Although  Caspar  Netscher  was  born  in  Heidel- 
berg in  1639,  he  is  reckoned  as  a  Dutch  painter. 
He  is  preeminently  a  painter  of  "  conversation  " 
pieces.  His  people  are  richly  dressed,  and  his  style 
is  elegant  in  the  extreme.  His  handling  is  free 
and  broad  for  a  worker  in  such  minute  detail.  He 
painted  in  Holland,  with  a  short  visit  to  England. 
The  youth  of  Caspar  Netscher  was  clouded  by  a 
terrible  experience.  After  his  father's  death,  his 
mother,  with  her  three  little  children,  was  obliged 
to  fly  before  the  Swedish  soldiers,  she  being  a 
Roman  Catholic.  She  took  refuge  in  a  fortress 
which  was  afterward  reduced  to  subjection  by  fam- 
ine, and  the  poor  woman  saw  two  of  her  children 
starve  to  death.  Caspar  was  the  only  survivor. 
After  this  they  managed  to  escape  to  Arnheim, 
where  they  were  under  the  protection  of  a  philan- 


3i8     ubc  Brt  ot  tbe  Bresben  6aUer^ 

thropist  who  saw  to  the  education  of  the  boy.  Turn- 
ing to  art  by  every  preference,  young  Netscher  soon 
became  a  good  painter,  and  by  the  time  he  was 
twenty  supported  himself  with  his  pencil.  He 
started  on  a  journey  to  Italy,  but  when  he  arrived 
at  Bordeaux  he  fell  in  love,  and  never  went  farther 
south;  he  soon  returned,  married,  to  The  Hague, 
and  in  1663  he  became  a  member  of  the  Society  of 
Painters. 

Netscher  was  famous  in  portraiture.  When 
William  HI.  was  asked  tO'  sit  to  Ter  Borch,  for  his 
likeness,  he  replied,  "I  have  sat  to  Netscher;  no 
one  can  rival  him  at  a  portrait."  Netscher  died  at 
the  age  of  forty-five  in  1684,  being  a  terrible  suf- 
ferer from  gout.  Dresden  is  the  best  gallery  in 
which  to  study  him,  as  a  large  proportion  of  his 
best  pictures  hang  in  these  cabinets.  All  the  way 
from  the  eighth  cabinet,  where  is  his  incomparable 
Letter  Writer,  with  unusual  beauty  of  face,  to  the 
seventeenth,  they  occur  here  and  there,  and  should 
be  looked  for  with  interest. 

Caspar  Netscher's  beautiful  textures  of  satin 
gleam  from  some  of  these  little  pictures :  exquisite 
whites  and  golds  shine  in  the  study  of  a  Lady  with 
a  Little  Dog,  having  her  hair  arranged  by  a  maid; 
Mme.  de  Montespan  is  seen  twice,  once  in  pure 
white,  and  again,  playing  the  harp,  with  the  little 
Duke  de  Maine,  in  a  childlike  spirit  of  imitation, 


H)utcb  painters  319 

seated  at  her  feet  picking  away  at  a  guitar !  A  lady 
singing  in  a  stone  window,  with  a  youth  playing 
the  lute  behind  her,  is  also  an  attractive  composi- 
tion. These  are  in  the  seventeenth  cabinet;  in  the 
thirteenth  are  also  some  of  Netscher's.  The  Sick 
Lady  and  her  Physician,  a  most  popular  theme,  is 
effective,  as  are  also  the  genre  subjects  of  a  some- 
what lower  social  scale,  the  Old  Woman  Spinning, 
and  the  Woman  Sewing.  The  Girl  with  a  Parrot 
is  a  copy,  but  is  gay  and  interesting  in  colour. 
Netscher  is  fond  of  introducing  Persian  rugs  for 
table-cloths;  and  most  decorative  spots  they  are. 
The  Dutch  masters  all  used  them  freely,  but 
Netscher  perhaps  oftenest  of  all. 

A  couple  of  still  life  studies  by  Abraham  Mignon 
should  be  noticed ;  he  was  a  pupil  of  De  Heem,  and 
several  of  his  works  are  scattered  among  these 
Dutch  rooms;  though  Mignon  was  a  native  of 
Frankfort,  he  studied  with  De  Heem  in  the  Nether- 
lands. 

Cornelis  van  Polenburgh  has  decorated  the  ninth 
cabinet  wath  many  attractive  landscape  subjects, 
and  in  each  may  be  seen  his  charming  little  figures. 
Polenburgh  was  specially  celebrated  for  his  small 
nude  figures :  a  novelty  in  Dutch  art  of  the  period. 
He  was  born  in  1586  at  Utrecht,  spent  some  time  in 
Italy,  and  also  in  England,  where  he  painted  por- 
traits  of  notables,   finally   returning   to  his   birth- 


320     XTbe  Brt  of  tbe  H>res&en  Galleri? 

place,  where  he  Hved  until  1667.  His  little  flying 
figures  are  particularly  charming.  The  inimitable 
humourist,  C.  S.  Calverley,  has  spoken  of  birds 
which  were  "  as  rosy  as  pinks,  or  as  roses  pinky." 
Such  a  phrase  must  be  coined  for  Polenburgh's 
aerial  infants.  Whether  they  are  Cheruby  Cupids 
or  Cupidy  Cherubs,  will  never  be  decided.  Polen- 
burgh  was  reputed  to  be  a  student  of  Raphael,  but 
Walpole  certainly  speaks  truly  when  he  remarks, 
"  it  is  impossible  to  say  where  they  find  Raphael 
in  Polenburgh!"  His  pictures  have  a  smooth, 
varnish-like  surface,  but  they  are  rather  neat  and 
pleasing  than  original  or  significant.  Polenburgh 
frequently  filled  in  the  figures  in  Steenwyck's  per- 
spective studies. 

A  very  graceful  female  figure,  lighted  with  much 
effect,  is  to  be  observed  in  Berchem's  Reception  of 
the  Moor.  A  merchant  is  seen  before  whom  a 
finely  dressed,  swarthy  Moor  is  standing.  It  would 
seem  that  the  story  of  Desdemona  and  Othello  had 
reached  the  artist,  and  that  he  represented  the  meet- 
ing much  as  it  was  described  by  Shakespeare. 
Berchem  lived  in  Amsterdam  during  the  latter  sev- 
enteenth century. 

In  the  tenth  cabinet  one  comes  upon  the  other 
example  of  the  delightful  Vermeer  of  Delft,  quite 
unlike  the  large  genre  subject  which  we  examined 
in   the   room   with   the   Rembrandts.     A   different 


VERMEER    OF    DELFT.  —  LADY    READING    A    LETTER 


Dutcb  painters  321 

side  to  the  painter  in  every  particular  is  to  be 
noted  in  this  exquisite  little  gem,  a  young  girl  read- 
ing a  letter  by  an  open  window.  The  first  impres- 
sion is  that  of  a  bath  of  cool  green  light  —  too  acid 
for  sea-water,  but  more  like  the  colour  of  an  unripe 
lemon.  The  curtain,  painted  so  roughly  yet  so 
cleverly,  is  the  first  surface  to  catch  the  eye :  its 
liquid  green  folds  are  as  opposed  to  the  colour  senti- 
ment of  the  other  picture  as  it  would  be  possible  to 
plan.  The  same  tender  lime  colour  glows  on  the 
gown  of  the  girl,  who  is  reading  —  and  really  read- 
ing; not  posing  with  a  letter  before  an  audience. 
The  crispness  of  Vermeer's  touch  is  sometimes 
likened  to  that  of  Hals,  and  there  is  much  in  com- 
mon. His  outlines  are  always  softened,  never  hard. 
In  this  way  he  is  a  great  painter  of  atmosphere. 
There  is  hardly  a  more  charming  example  of  his 
work  in  Europe  than  this  little  green  lady. 
'  Frans  Hals  was  born  in  Antwerp  about  1580, 
but  his  family  being  Haarlem  people,  he  spent  most 
of  his  life  in  that  town.  He  was  the  real  founder 
of  the  Dutch  school.  We  have  none  of  his  large 
pictures  in  Dresden  —  only  some  portraits.  The 
two  heads  of  men,  tiny,  but  dashing,  do  not  in  the 
least  exhibit  the  master's  true  qualities  of  breadth 
and  light.  In  one  of  them,  No.  1359.  he  certainly 
laboured  under  a  great  disadvantage  on  account  of 
the  singular  hideousness  of  his  sitter! 


322     ube  art  ot  tbe  H)rest)en  (Bailer^ 

Frans  Hals,  popular  in  his  own  immediate  day, 
but  soon  forgotten,  was  only  rediscovered,  as  it 
were,  by  artists  like  himself.  People  had  not  real- 
ized the  power  of  his  work,  until  men  like  Sir 
Joshua  Reynolds  and  later  Eugene  Fromentin  came 
to  study  his  great  broad  strokes.  Then  it  was  that 
these  men  revealed  to  the  dulled  sensibilities  of 
those  who  called  themselves  critics,  this  inestimably 
brilliant  leader.  Only  a  man  who  used  a  brush 
himself  could  fully  appreciate  the  rapid,  true,  accu- 
rate work  of  Hals ;  only  a  man  who  knew  the  uses 
of  light  and  shade  could  detect  the  work  of  the 
great  master  who  knew  so  well  how  to  bring  day- 
light into  the  confines  of  a  canvas.  We  do  not  even 
know  who  his  master  was;  he  is  certainly  the 
product  of  no  then  existing  school.  There  has  been 
a  suggestion  that  the  master  of  Rubens  might  have 
been  the  master  of  Hals,  but  this  is  almost  entirely 
conjectural.  As  there  are  none  of  his  early  works 
remaining,  it  is  not  easy  to  trace  his  progress :  he 
bursts  upon  us  in  his  full  ripeness,  and  in  nearly 
every  picture  by  his  hand  there  is  a  power  and  vital- 
ity which  are  developed  to  a  surprising  degree.  He 
was  preeminently  a  great  painter  of  men.  Nature, 
aside  from  human  nature,  seems  not  to  have  made 
an  appeal  to  him ;  he  introduces  as  little  still  life 
as  is  consistent  with  his  subjects.  Humanity  and 
the  human  face  in  expressions  of  joy  and  optimism 


H)utcF)  painters  323 

are  his  preferences.  Even  animals  he  did  not  care 
to  introduce.  Great  studies  of  cheerful  men  and 
women  are  what  we  generally  associate  with  his 
name;  there  is  no  man  who  can  so  subtly  produce 
the  impression  of  a  smile  held  in  abeyance  as  can 
Frans  Hals.  He  was  a  great  precursor  of  modern 
realism;  poetry  and  mystery  were  closed  books  to 
him.  His  imagination  was  never  displayed.  Facts 
—  great  human  facts  —  and  a  power  making  for 
cheerfulness  —  these  are  the  characteristics  of  Frans 
Hals.  His  handling  was  not  only  original,  but  at 
that  time  unique.  The  long  flat  strokes  have  an 
individual  charm  which  cannot  fail  to  delight  any 
man  who  has  ever  tried  to  give  expression  himself 
through  the  same  medium. 

He  used  a  canvas  fairly  coarse,  but  seldom  as 
heavy  as  those  employed  by  the  Venetians.  Once 
in  awhile  he  used  oak  panel,  while  he  was  in  his 
earl/  stages  of  development.  The  two  little  por- 
traits in  Dresden  are  on  wood.  Perhaps  one  can 
get  a  better  idea  of  Hals's  late  manner  from  the 
painting  by  his  son,  of  Hille  Bobbe  and  a  Smoking 
Man,  which  hangs  in  Hall  K.  It  is  very  spirited, 
and  the  touch  is  much  like  Frans  Hals's  own  later 
work. 

His  brushes  were  usually  of  medium  size,  except 
when  he  used  a  fine  brush  for  hair  and  details.  His 
colour  is  usually  well  diluted,  and  he  seldom  loads 


324     Ube  Hrt  ot  tbe  2)resC)en  Gallery 

with  heavy,  dry  impasto.  Therefore  his  pictures 
are  better  lasting  than  some  of  his  contemporaries, 
and  are  even  and  smooth  in  the  actual  plane  of  the 
surface,  though  the  effect  will  often  be  rough.  He 
was  a  rapid  worker,  and  finished  his  task  at  once, 
so  that  it  all  dried  evenly,  and  is  less  liable  to  crack 
and  scale.  Hals  had  certain  limitations,  whether 
intentional  or  accidental  we  do  not  know.  There 
has  never  been  a  religious  subject  by  his  hand,  or 
a  nude,  or  a  classical  scene.  He  was  purely  con- 
temporaneous —  he  did  not  dig  into  the  past  for  his 
inspiration. 

The  question  of  his  having  been  a  hard  drinker 
and  a  worthless  fellow  is  answered  by  his  achieve- 
ment. Gay  and  volatile  he  may  have  been,  and  hot- 
tempered  and  difficult  to  live  with ;  but  he  must 
have  been  nearly  always  in  a  reliable  state,  for  an 
intoxicated  man  cannot  be  a  brilliant  painter.  The 
bottle  occasionally  inspires  eloquence,  and  some- 
times wit,  or  a  musical  ecstasy ;  but  for  the  accurate 
use  of  a  brush  in  fluid  paint,  a  wavering  hand  or 
elated  vision  are  out  of  the  question.  There  is  no 
doubt  that  he  got  into  financial  troubles.  The 
workhouse  and  the  Police  courts  had  to  be  heard 
from,  particularly  at  the  end  of  his  life.  In  1656 
his  baker  sued  him  for  two  hundred  Carolus  Gulden : 
in  1662,  he  himself  applied  for  aid  to  the  municipal 
council,  and  received  a  hundred  and  fifty  florins. 


H)utcb  painters  325 

Later  they  pensioned  him  with  two  hundred  gulden, 
and  presented  him  with  three  loads  of  peat.  He 
died  in  great  want,  and  was  buried  in  1666,  in  the 
choir  of  St.  Bavon  at  Haarlem. 

Ruysdael  has  painted  the  topographical  portrait 
of  Holland,  Each  characteristic  of  his  native  coun- 
try is  brought  out  in  the  course  of  his  studies.  Ruys- 
dael is  the  central  figure  in  the  landscape  art  of  the 
seventeenth  century.  It  is  interesting  to  see  how 
his  subjects  bear  out  the  statement  of  Kugler,  that 
there  is  in  Ruysdael  a  renewal  of  the  spirit  of 
nature-worship  ascribed  to  the  early  Germans  by 
Tacitus.  "  The  land,"  writes  Tacitus,  *'  though 
varied  to  a  considerable  extent  in  its  aspect,  is  yet 
universally  shagged  with  forests,  or  deformed  by 
marshes :  moister  on  the  side  of  Gaul,  more  bleak 
on  the  side  of  Noricum  and  Pannonia.  .  .  .  they 
unite  in  worship  of  Mother  Earth,  and  suppose  her 
to  interfere  in  the  affairs  of  men,  and  to  visit  the 
different  nations."  The  belief  of  the  ancient  Ger- 
mans concerning  the  sunrise  was  that  "  the  sound 
of  his  emerging  from  the  ocean  is  also  heard,  and 
the  form  of  a  deity  with  rays  beaming  from  his 
head  is  beheld.  ...  In  their  ancient  songs,  .  .  . 
they  celebrate  the  god  Tuisto,  sprung  from  the 
earth." 

Very  little  is  known  of  Ruysdael;  he  was  bom 
about  1630,  and  died  in  1682;    he  was  a  friend  of 


326     ube  Hvt  ot  tbe  H)res&en  Oalletg 

the  painter  Berchem,  and  of  Hobbema :  Solomon 
Rtiysdael  was  his  elder  brother,  and  possibly  his 
first  teacher.  There  are  not  many  records  of  his 
life.  A  few  documents  are  extant  in  which  his 
name  occurs,  and  that  is  almost  the  only  testimony 
as  to  the  events  of  his  life. 

He  began  as  an  engraver,  perhaps  under  the  in- 
struction, or  at  any  rate,  under  the  influence,  of 
Everdingen  of  Haarlem.  He  soon  abandoned  the 
burin  and  the  "  eau  forte  "  for  the  pencil,  and  some 
of  his  paintings  would  appear  to  date  from  his 
twentieth  year,  when  it  is  possible  that  he  had  trav- 
elled somewhat. 

Up  to  the  time  that  Ruysdael  was  made  a 
Burgher  of  Amsterdam,  in  1659,  his  works 
amounted  to  about  two  hundred  and  fifty.  He  de- 
veloped and  advanced  enormously  on  his  arrival  in 
Amsterdam.  This  was  really  the  most  important 
event  of  his  life,  so  far  as  we  know  his  history. 
One  of  the  rare  records  states  that  in  1661  he 
served  on  a  Committee  regarding  the  inspection  of 
certain  art  treasures;  in  1668  he  is  mentioned  as 
a  witness  at  the  marriage  of  the  painter,  Hobbema. 
In  1667  he  made  a  will  in  favour  of  his  half-sister: 
it  is  evident  that  he  then  considered  his  health  in 
a  precarious  condition.  He  had  contracted  a  serious 
rheumatic  condition  from  sitting  among  the  damp 
polders  when  he  made  his  sketches.    His  pictures  of 


2)utcb  painters  327 

this  type  certainly  would  account  for  any  rheuma- 
tism or  malaria  which  he  may  have  had. 

Houbraken  writes,  "  I  discover  no  evidence  that 
fortune  ever  favoured  him  with  her  company."  He 
was  unappreciated,  and  his  art  was  not  a  sufficient 
means  of  support.  To  prevent  himself  from  starv- 
ing, he  undertook  to  paint  landscape  backgrounds 
for  his  fellow  artists,  filling  in  their  pictures  for  so 
much  a  foot.  Some  of  the  pictures  in  which  he  so 
collaborated  have  been  saved,  more  on  his  account 
than  because  of  the  value  of  the  other  artist's  work. 
For  instance,  in  Hall  K,  there  is  a  mediocre  picture 
by  Jan  Vonck,  No.  1637,  which  is  chiefly  interesting 
because  Ruysdael  painted  the  wooded  scene.  The 
deer  pursued  by  dogs  is  of  secondary  importance. 

Finally,  in  the  year  1681,  there  is  a  record  that 
his  friends  arranged  to  pay  for  his  maintenance  at 
the  Haarlem  Hospital.  Ending  his  days  thus  in  an 
Institution,  this  sad  life  came  to  a  close  in  1682, 
when  another  mention  occurs,  of  "  opening  a  tomb 
for  Jacob  Ruysdael  in  the  south  aisle  of  the  church 
of  St.  Bavon,  four  florins." 

One  of  the  most  poetic  of  Ruysdael's  pictures,  full 
of  romantic  solitude,  is  the  Monastery.  The  de- 
serted building,  crumbling  into  ruin,  leads  the  eye 
toward  a  verdured  slope,  while  on  the  right  is  a 
clump  of  graceful  trees,  casting  a  cool  shadow  on 
the  damp,   marshy   foreground.     One  cannot   but 


328     ubc  Brt  of  tbe  Bres^en  ©allerg 

fancy  that  the  Monastery  was  abandoned  because 
of  the  amount  of  malaria  which  must  have  lurked 
in  this  lonely  spot. 

Another  landscape  in  which  there  is  a  species  of 
defunct  human  interest  is  the  Jewish  Burying- 
ground,  in  this  same  cabinet.  This  cemetery  was 
in  Amsterdam.  The  dank  little  spot,  with  its  neg- 
lected tombs,  past  which  a  small  cataract  tumbles, 
typifying  the  indifference  of  Nature  to  human  loss, 
is  full  of  mystery.  A  storm  has  just  passed;  a 
sullen  shadow  of  mist  still  veils  the  church  in  the 
background,  while  the  promise  of  the  rainbow  is 
held  in  the  distance. 

Dresden  abounds  in  these  damp,  peaceful,  un- 
wholesome specimens  of  Ruysdael.  Of  his  wilder 
mood  we  have  few  opportunities  to  judge :  The 
Ford  in  the  Wood,  in  the  sixteenth  cabinet,  is  a 
study  of  placid  water :  one  of  the  few  pictures  in 
which  a  cart,  horse,  and  men  appear.  The  Chase, 
too,  —  a  stag  being  hunted  across  a  stream,  —  is 
much  the  same  in  general  topographical  arrange- 
ment. The  atmospheric  feeling  is  cheerful  in  this, 
and  the  animation  given  to  the  scene  by  the  active 
little  figures  is  immediately  felt. 

The  view  of  Castle  Bentheim  up  on  its  high  hill 
is  most  romantic.  The  luxuriance  of  the  foliage 
and  undergrowth  in  the  foreground  is  very  rich. 
It  is  thought  that  the  elaboration  of  this  part  of  the 


Dutcb  painters  329 

picture  was  probably  added  in  later  years,  as  the 
aerial  perspective  of  the  castle  and  the  hill  is  some- 
what amateurish,  and  is  probably  the  work  of 
Ruysdael's  early  days.  There  are  three  character- 
istic waterfalls :  one  usually  associates  the  name  of 
Ruysdael  with  these  manifestations  of  nature. 

Fromentin  calls  our  attention  to  the  way  any 
picture  by  Ruysdael  "  rests  solidly  with  its  four 
corners  upon  the  shining  flutings  of  the  frame." 
He  lays  much  stress  upon  the  fact  that  Ruysdael 
considers  the  appearance  which  his  work  will  have 
when  framed,  and  plans  his  tones  so  that  the  bright 
gold  may  be  becoming  to  them. 

A  distant  view  of  a  Ruysdael  is  not  a  fair  test. 
He  was  as  conscientious  as  a  Pre-Raphaelite,  and 
the  light  does  not  penetrate  the  picture  for  your 
examination  until  you  come  nearer.  His  pictures 
are  not  animated :  they  are  often  almost  heavy  and 
frequently  positively  morose.  Yet  he  is  unique,  and 
piques  the  interest  through  his  mysteriousness  and 
the  evidences  of  a  mind  back  of  his  work,  the  more 
interesting  because  there  is  so  little  known  of  his 
history. 

Often  one  feels  that  the  intention  of  a  landscape 
is  to  perpetuate  some  mood  of  the  artist,  as  in  the 
Monastery  the  sentiment  of  quiet  is  emphasized. 
The  Monastery  is  a  most  famous  work;  the  damp, 
marshy  foregrounds  of  his  pictures  of  this  period 


330     Ube  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresden  Gallery 

suggest  the  influence  of  the  drawings  brought  by 
Everdingen  from  Scandinavia.  He  could  not  paint 
either  fig-ures  or  cattle  successfully;  he  had  no 
adaptability  for  rendering  anything  but  the  expres- 
sion of  nature,  and  even  in  that  he  usually  employed 
a  limited  palette;  grays  and  greens  predominating. 
Solitude  is  the  chief  characteristic  of  most  of  his 
pictures :  whether  this  is  felt  principally  because  he 
was  unable  to  represent  animal  and  human  life,  or 
by  intention,  is  the  question.  Ruysdael  was  too 
impersonal  to  be  the  fashion.  He  had  no  striking 
mannerisms :  he  was  slow  and  faithful,  and  without 
any  tricks ;  painstaking,  at  a  time  when  skill  and 
rapidity  were  in  demand.  Hardship  and  a  lack  of 
a  comprehending  appreciation  on  the  part  of  his 
contemporaries  gradually  undermined  his  enthusi- 
asm, and  consequently  his  work  fell  off.  The  mor- 
bid love  for  storms  and  torrents,  for  scenes  of  nat- 
ural cruelty,  and  stem,  relentless  cataracts,  offset 
with  sombre,  brooding  pines,  characterizes  his  later 
style.  He  was  a  thinker,  and  his  compositions  all 
show  this.  Whether  the  thought  were  gloomy  or 
cheerful,  the  mental  process  is  never  absent.  Until 
the  late  eighteenth  and  early  nineteenth  centuries, 
Ruysdael  did  not  become  the  fashion,  and  conse- 
quently was  overlooked.  His  life  rriust  have  been 
full  of  disappointment,  but  his  work  connotes  a 
character  which  had  arrived  at  the  true  peace;   the 


Dutcb  painters  331 

ability  to  adapt  his  longings  to  his  environment. 
Even  in  sorrow,  no  repining  or  bitterness  appears. 

The  Two  CavaHers  in  a  Sandy  Road,  by  Thomas 
de  Keyser,  lacks  power,  yet  it  gives  a  certain  early 
seventeenth-century  impression  of  out-of-door  life: 
the  man  in  advance  has  a  falcon  on  his  wrist,  and 
the  broad-chested,  stubby  steeds  are  not  without 
action. 

Adriaen  Van  der  Velde  is  primarily  regarded  as 
a  landscape  and  cattle  painter,  but  of  all  his  pictures 
in  Dresden  the  most  striking  is  a  masterly  scrap,  — 
a  woman  drinking,  No.  1656,  in  which  the  handling 
is  magnificent.  Van  der  Velde  and  Wouwermans 
were  close  friends,  working  together  as  boys  in  the 
studio  of  Jan  Wynants.  Wynants  evidently  had  a 
discriminating  wife.  This  lady  gave  her  husband 
warning,  saying :  "  You  may  imagine  that  you  have 
a  mere  pupil  in  this  youth;  but  if  you  are  not  care- 
ful he  will  soon  become  your  master."  Relations 
between  master  and  scholar,  however,  did  not  be- 
come strained,  although  the  good  wife  was  justified 
in  her  prophecy. 

We  have  three  pasturage  scenes  which  are  very 
typical,  one  in  this  room,  in  which  the  artist's  own 
portrait  appears.  In  the  fourteenth  cabinet  is  his 
Sports  on  the  Ice,  a  typical  Dutch  winter  scene, 
with  skaters  and  sledges.  A  gabled  house  stands 
high  on  a  cliff  at  the  right. 


332     x^be  Hrt  of  tbe  S)re0&en  (Bailer^ 

The  famous  Water  Mill  of  Meindert  Hobbema 
stands  in  the  twelfth  cabinet  upon  an  easel;  it  is 
a  rare  gem  bought  in  Munich  in  1899,  ^^^^  brought 
to  Dresden.  It  is  as  exquisite  a  specimen  of  this 
artist  as  any  that  exist ;  its  soft  green  and  its  tender, 
clear  atmosphere  make  it  a  masterpiece  of  priceless 
value. 

Eeckhout's  Vision  of  Jacob  is  not  so  graceful  a 
composition  as  that  by  Ferdinand  Bol  recently  ex- 
amined. The  angels  are  not  so  tall,  willowy,  and 
spirit-like.  Gerhard  van  Eeckhout  was  a  pupil  of 
Rembrandt,  and  a  pleasing  painter  of  this  school, 
but  must  come  decidedly  under  the  head  of  an  imi- 
tator. Here  we  see  two  specimens  of  the  remark- 
able young  cattle  painter,  Paul  Potter.  To  most 
people  Paul  Potter  stands  only  as  the  painter  of 
the  Young  Bull  at  The  Hague;  volumes  have  been 
written  about  this  picture,  which  holds  a  unique 
position  in  the  field  of  art.  These  smaller  panels 
in  Dresden  would  hardly  predispose  one  to  place 
Potter  among  the  great  geniuses  of  the  world.  Yet 
he  has  been  accorded  such  a  place;  and  we  cannot 
overlook  the  fact.  Perhaps  one  secret  of  his  enor- 
mous fame  lies  in  the  fact  of  his  early  death.  Born 
in  1625,  he  only  lived  until  1654,  and  having  this 
short-lived  glory  in  common  with  the  great  Italian 
may  account  for  his  being  styled  the  Raphael  of 
Animals.     But  whoever  would  have  an  opinion  on 


2)utcb  painters  333 

this  point  must  compare  Potter's  Bull  with  the  Sis- 
tine  Madonna.  Then  he  is  in  a  position  to  determine 
for  himself  whether  he  considers  the  appellation  a 
just  one.  Sentimental  people  have  claimed  that  the 
youthful  Potter  died  of  overwork.  Overwork  did 
not  kill  Rubens,  nor  Rembrandt,  nor  Van  Dyck, 
nor  any  of  the  extremely  prolific  painters  of  history. 
More  exactly  scientific  people  admit  that  Paul  Pot- 
ter was  consumptive,  and  that  is  a  sufficient  reason 
for  his  early  death.  The  life  was  a  pathetic  one; 
his  character  seems  to  have  been  lovable,  and  his 
talent  and  ambition  conspicuous  from  the  first.  The 
wonderful  part  of  his  achievement  is  that  he  was 
self-instructed,  and  that  he  was  a  full-fledged  painter 
at  fifteen.  Whether  he  would  have  continued  to 
advance  at  the  same  /ate  had  he  lived  to  grow  older 
is  a  question  which  never  can  be  answered.  It 
seems  to  me  that  his  position  in  art  hinges  chiefly 
upon  these  qualities  of  precocity  and  pathos.  And 
they  are  powerful  factors  in  fame,  perhaps  as  ra- 
tional as  any  others.  Paul  Potter's  Cattle  in  a  Pas- 
ture should  not  be  unnoticed.  It  is  very  character- 
istic, and  is  dated  1652.  The  paint  is  so  thin  in 
places  that  the  wooden  panel  can  be  detected  under- 
neath, and  yet  the  effect  is  that  of  a  tender  glow. 
This  was  painted  only  two  years  before  his  death. 

Gotfried   Schalcken   was   an   imitator  of   Gerard 
Dou,  though  a  pupil  of  Hoogstraeten.     Pie  lived 


334     Ube  Hrt  ot  tbe  Bres&en  (Bailer^ 

much  at  The  Hague,  where  he  died  in  1706,  but  his 
earher  associations  are  with  Dort.  He  is  an  apostle 
of  the  candle.  The  Girl  Holding  an  Egg  to  the 
Light  is  interesting:  the  bargain-loving  market- 
goer  is  testing  eggs  in  this  way  at  the  stall  before 
buying  them.  A  dozen  meant  a  real  dozen  in  those 
days.  Every  egg  must  be  edible !  A  curious  study 
by  sharp  candle-light  is  that  of  a  young  man  who,  in 
very  obscure  darkness,  holds  a  lighted  candle  before 
the  marble  bust  of  a  woman,  whose  face  the  flame 
illumes  garishly.  This  trick  of  casting  lights  was 
much  liked  by  Schalcken;  in  Cabinet  8  there  is  a 
picture  of  a  lady  holding  a  light  so  that  it  would 
illuminate  the  face  of  the  spectator,  —  a  singular 
fancy.  The  illusion  is  good;  one  feels  inclined  to 
shield  one's  eyes  from  the  glare,  in  order  to  get 
a  better  look  at  the  girl. 

A  merry,  frosty  scene  of  sport  is  by  Isaac  van 
Ostade,  a  pupil  and  brother  of  Adriaen,  who  lived 
from  1 62 1  to  1649.  Amusement  on  the  ice  is  the 
title  of  this  crisp  little  picture,  and  skaters  are  seen 
skimming  the  glassy  surface,  while  wood-cutters 
are  also  guiding  their  teams  across  the  hard,  frozen 
river. 

One  should  not  pass  the  little  panel  called  the 
Wine  Bibber,  by  Arie  de  Vols,  a  Dutchman  of  the 
early  seventeenth  century,  without  noting  the  deli- 
cious study  of  facial  expression  in  the  picture. 


2)utcb  painters  335 

Nikolaus  Knupfer,  a  little-known  artist,  who  had 
the  honour  of  being  the  master  of  Jan  Steen,  has 
painted  a  portrait  of  himself  and  his  family,  which 
hangs  in  this  room.  It  is  a  most  attractive  group, 
merry  and  naive;  evidently  Knupfer  knew  some- 
thing of  the  joy  of  living,  and  his  very  love  for  his 
home  life  may  account  for  the  fact  that  there  are 
few  things  told  of  him  by  the  chroniclers.  That  he 
could  paint  well  is  manifest.  He  represents  himself 
as  leader  of  a  little  domestic  orchestra.  He  holds 
a  sheet  of  music,  and  is  evidently  keeping  time.  His 
smiling  wife  holds  a  nude  child  of  two  years,  who 
stands  on  the  table,  in  a  martial  attitude,  playing 
vigorously  on  her  little  pipe.  A  child  of  eight  or 
ten  is  singing  from  another  sheet  of  music,  while 
a  smaller  one  is  throwing  back  his  head  in  amuse- 
ment, and  pointing  derisively  at  the  baby  and  its 
musical  efforts.  The  whole  certainly  suggests  a 
family  harmony. 

In  Pieter  Codde's  Soldiers  in  a  Guard-room,  the 
touch  is  like  that  of  the  French  artist,  Meissonnier. 
This  little  panel  is  No.  1391. 

The  best  piece  of  still  life  in  the  gallery  is  an 
extremely  disordered  breakfast-table,  on  w^hich 
glasses  and  goblets  appear,  a  dish  with  part  of  a 
pasty,  on  the  top  of  which  lies  an  Apostle  spoon, 
and  an  overturned  silver  cup  of  beautiful  design. 
A  dagger  lies  on  the  table,  and  at  the  other  side  an 


336     ubc  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresden  (Balleri? 

old-fashioned  timepiece,  with  its  open  case.  A  key 
on  a  ribbon  depends  from  this.  The  quaHty  of  the 
transparent  glass  and  the  sparkling  liquid  within 
could  hardly  be  more  perfectly  presented.  Such 
rendering  of  still  life  reminds  us  of  the  famous 
fountain  in  Rome,  above  which  was  painted  a  cor- 
nice, so  skilfully  imitated  that  birds,  in  attempting 
to  alight  upon  it,  not  infrequently  fell  into  the 
water  below!  A  critic  of  i860  said  of  the  Dutch 
school  that  they  thought  more  of  satin  than  of  sun- 
shine, and  that  their  people  looked  like  "  models 
painted  by  candle-light  strained  through  crape." 

The  names  of  the  pictures  by  Egbert  van  der 
Poel  will  serve  to  classify  them  among  the  unimagi- 
native Dutch  works  already  alluded  to:  Male  and 
Female  Peasant  in  a  Stable  Near  an  Oven;  and 
Courtship  in  a  Peasant's  Room. 

Gerard  Dou  was  born  in  Leyden  in  161 3.  His 
father  intended  him  to  follow  his  own  trade,  as  an 
engraver  on  glass,  and  had  him  taught  drawing 
for  that  purpose.  For  a  time  he  devoted  himself 
to  this  craft,  but  he  soon  showed  such  decided  ar- 
tistic talent  that  his  father  very  wisely  sent  him  to 
study  with  the  "  skilled  and  far-famed  Mr.  Rem- 
brandt "  in  1628. 

Gerard  commenced  his  independent  career  with 
intentions  of  becoming  a  portrait  painter;  but  his 
slow,  minute  work  proved  too  great  a  tax  on  the 


Butcb  pafnters  337 

patience  of  most  sitters,  so  that  he  was  fain  to  in- 
dulge his  taste  chiefly  in  genre  pictures,  in  which 
a  considerable  amount  of  still  life  occurred,  —  a 
safe  model  for  such  a  plodding,  snail-like  worker, 
since  it  did  not  get  restless  with  being  so  labori- 
ously studied !  The  "  Vanitas  "  picture  of  the 
period  —  a  skull,  Bible,  and  hour-glass  —  proved  a 
great  resource  for  Don's  early  efforts ;  these  morbid 
subjects  were  bought  in  great  numbers  by  the  faith- 
ful, being  considered  as  wholesome  reminders  of 
the  future. 

In  many  of  Don's  early  works  we  recognize  the 
famous  old  model  of  Rembrandt,  —  an  aged  man 
with  white  hair  and  beard.  In  Don's  Hermit  in 
Dresden,  painted  about  1631,  this  person  occurs. 
All  the  usual  attributes  of  a  "  Vanitas  "  are  also 
introduced.  Perhaps  if  Amsterdam  had  then  had 
its  famous  Zoo,  Don  would  have  made  a  little  pil- 
grimage there  and  learned  to  paint  a  lion,  so  that 
this  picture  would  have  taken  on  the  greater  dignity 
of  a  St.  Jerome!  The  Flowers  and  Still  Life  are 
admirably  rendered,  —  detail  was  his  passion,  and 
it  grew  stronger  always. 

The  Portrait  of  the  Artist  in  his  Studio  is  a 
crowded  piece  of  still  life,  in  the  midst  of  which 
Gerard  Don  sits  with  a  pen.  apparently  in  the  act 
of  writing  on  a  picture  in  a  book.  Very  little 
actual  thought  is  visible  in  such  a  composition  — 


33^      XTbe  Brt  ot  tbe  BresDen  (Ballerp 

the  nice  finish  was  what  the  artist  was  thinking  of. 
It  would  have  been  quite  impossible  for  Dou  to 
have  worked  in  such  an  atmosphere !  He  was  so 
morbidly  particular  that  he  would  allow  no  move- 
ment in  his  studio  while  he  was  working,  for  fear 
of  disturbing  some  dust  which  might  spoil  his 
"  enamail  "  surface.  If  he  had  been  familiar  with 
the  method  of  making  lacquer,  —  if  he  had  known 
that  every  time  a  coat  of  the  varnish  is  applied, 
the  object  being  decorated  is  taken  out  to  sea  in 
a  small  boat,  so  that  it  may  dry  where  there  is  no 
dust,  I  have  no  doubt  that  Gerard  would  have  set 
up  a  rowboat  and  started  off  up  the  canal  into  the 
open  sea  between  coats!  I  question  whether  Dou 
himself  gave  its  name  to  this  picture.  His  studio 
must  have  been  intentionally  as  bare  as  it  conve- 
niently could  be. 

Orlers,  a  chronicler  of  Dou,  says  that  "  every- 
body who  saw  them  could  but  admire  their  pretti- 
ness  and  curiosity,  and  his  pieces  were  soon  held 
in  great  esteem  by  lovers  of  art,"  and  Philips  Angel, 
court  painter,  remarks  upon  "  a  curious  dexterity 
indeed  which  he  achieves  with  a  sure  and  firm 
hand."  Sandrart  gives  a  description  of  Dou's 
method  of  work :  "  he  rubs  down  his  colours  on 
glass,"  says  the  narrator,  "  and  makes  his  brushes 
himself;  he  keeps  his  palette,  brushes,  and  paints 
carefully  away  out  of  the  dust  which  might  soil 


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GERARD    DOU.  PORTRAIT    OF    THE    ARTIST    IN    HIS    STUDIO 


H)utcb  painters  339 

them,  and  when  he  prepares  to  paint  he  will  wait 
quite  a  long  time  until  all  dust  has  completely  set- 
tled. Only  then  does  he  very  quietly  take  his  palette 
out  of  its  box  near  at  hand,  the  prepared  colours 
and  brushes,  and  begin  to  work :  and  when  he  has 
done  he  puts  everything  carefully  away  again !  " 
Dutch  studios  were  all  equipped  with  collections  of 
prints  and  engravings,  which  the  painter  often  con- 
sidered in  the  light  of  models,  using  what  other 
men  had  designed  instead  of  what  he  might  com- 
pile himself  from  figures  and  nature.  This  time  and 
labour-saving  expedient  was  commended  by  De 
Piles,  who  observed  that  "it  is  good  to  make  use 
of  the  studies  of  others,  without  any  hesitation." 
Diirer's  Treatise  on  Perspective  was  a  book  always 
found  in  Dutch  studios,  which  were  all  furnished 
with  a  few,  but  valuable,  books ;  the  Bible  and  Ovid 
were  the  most  popular  quarries.  Landscape  artists 
made  first  drawings  from  nature,  and  then  finished 
them  in  the  studio.  This  accounts  for  their  lack  of 
daylight. 

Dou  liked  the  arched  window  as  a  secondary 
frame  for  his  subjects.  In  most  of  his  more  im- 
portant works  this  is  to  be  seen ;  sometimes  a  plain 
stone  arch,  as  in  the  Old  Schoolmaster  Mending  his 
Pen,  No.  1709,  and  again  an  ornately  carv^ed  aper- 
ture, as  in  the  Violin  Player,  No.  1707,  which,  prob- 


340     ube  Hrt  ot  tbe  2)res^en  Gallery 

ably  without  foundation,   has  popularly  been  sup- 
posed to  be  a  portrait  of  the  artist  himself. 

Another  peculiarity  of  Dou's  besides  the  use  of 
the  arched  window  was  his  love  for  studies  of  deep 
gloom  with  candle-light  effects.  There  are  several 
characteristic  specimens  of  this  type  in  Dresden. 
Modern  critics  are  too  prone  to  speak  of  this  sort 
of  study  as  "  artificial."  From  the  daylight  point  of 
view,  of  course,  it  is  artificial ;  but  we  must  remem- 
ber that  the  whole  evening,  —  a  good  part  of  the 
time  in  a  Holland  winter,  —  these  candle  effects 
must  have  been  familiar  sights,  for  the  only  method 
of  lighting  the  houses  in  those  days  was  by  means  of 
lanterns  and  candles.  Little  chandeliers,  apparently 
quite  inadequate,  hang  in  most  of  the  pictured  inte- 
riors of  the  best  rooms,  while  cellars  and  kitchens 
had  to  get  on  with  tiny  spots  of  light  amidst  heavy 
darkness.  Therefore  these  extreme  arrangements 
of  light  and  shade  must  have  been  seen  every  day 
by  Gerard  Dou.  It  is  said  that  he  used  to  arrange 
his  model  as  he  wished,  in  a  dark  room,  with  a 
candle,  and  then  paint  the  picture  thus  prepared  by 
looking  through  a  hole  in  the  door,  which  concen- 
trated the  darkness  and  emphasized  the  lights !  The 
minute  work  which  he  executed  so  continuously  had 
a  bad  effect  upon  his  eyes,  so  that  when  only  thirty 
years  of  age  he  was  obliged  to  depend  upon  spec- 
tacles.   As  many  of  his  pictures  were  copied,  indeed 


2)utcb  painters  34* 

transcribed,  from  reflections  in  a  concave  mirror, 
which  he  employed  to  reduce  his  designs  to  their 
selected  lyoportions,  it  will  be  readily  understood 
that  his  optic  nerve  was  subjected  to  severe 
strains. 

A  great  collection  of  Gerard  Don's  works  was 
the  Cabinet  de  Bye,  in  Leyden.  Many  of  the  paint- 
ers, his  contemporaries  (Rembrandt  and  Van 
Goyen)  had  been  obliged  to  go  elsewhere  to  seek 
more  prompt  sales  for  their  work ;  but  Dou,  having 
all  that  he  could  do,  remained  there,  with  the  result 
that  he  practically  controlled  the  art  market  of  the 
city.  From  this  collection  came  two  of  the  Dresden 
pictures,  —  No.  171 3,  the  Girl  and  Youth  in  a  Wine 
Cellar,  and  No.  1708,  a  study  of  still  life,  which  was 
originally  employed  as  a  cover  to  the  case  which 
held  the  first.  The  dim  background  of  the  cellar  has 
just  enough  atmosphere  about  it  to  make  one  feel 
that  one  could  see  farther  in  if  it  were  not  so  dark; 
it  does  not  suggest  simply  a  mass  of  neutral  paint : 
as  with  the  famous  Night  School  in  Amsterdam, 
the  instinct  is  to  raise  one's  hand  to  keep  out  the 
glare  from  the  lantern,  in  order  to  see  more  clearly 
what  is  beyond!  A  more  perfect  illusion  with 
painted  light  could  hardly  be  found. 

Dou  seldom  went  to  high  life  for  his  inspiration  : 
he  painted  the  homely  scenes  of  every  day  in  the 
streets.     By  placing  so  many  of  his  figures  in  win- 


342     ube  art  of  tbe  Bresben  Gallery 

dows  he  gives  the  impression  that  they  were  simply 
sights  which  he  had  passed  as  he  walked  about ;  but 
knowing  the  length  of  time  devoted  to  tli^  painting 
of  each,  we  know  that  in  reality  the  pose  must  have 
been  of  rigid  durability. 

He  certainly  was  not  what  is  meant  by  a  prolific 
painter.  Beginning  at  fifteen,  and  working  until 
he  was  sixty-two,  he  only  left  about  two  hundred 
works  behind  him.  Sir  Joshua  Reynolds  said  that 
he  looked  at  Don's  pictures  "  with  admiration  on 
the  lips,  but  with  indifference  in  the  heart."  Cer- 
tainly there  is  nothing  to  inspire  lofty  thoughts  or 
deep  emotion.  He  and  Mieris  are  masters  of  tri- 
fling things  —  the  "  petty  masters,"  as  they  have 
been  denominated  —  after  all.  Pretty  lights  falling 
on  delicately  wrought  objects,  that  is  the  limit  of 
their  message. 

Don's  fame  was  of  gradual  development.  In 
1640  he  was  a  well-known  painter;  in  1660  he  was 
recosrnized  as  one  of  the  most  esteemed  artists  of 
the  century.  His  pictures  were  regarded  as  objects 
of  great  value,  and  were  sent  by  the  States  as  gifts 
to  Sovereigns.  Charles  H.  of  England  received 
three.  Evelyn  alludes  to  them  in  his  Diary  as 
"  painted  by  Dou  so  finely  as  hardly  to  be  distin- 
guished from  enamel."  There  is  an  interesting  echo 
from  the  journalism  of  the  past,  in  an  adver- 
tisement   appearing    in    the    Haarlemische    Cou^ 


H)utcb  painters  343 

rant  in  1665,  calling  attention  to  the  collection  of 
Don's  paintings  belonging  to  Johan  de  Bye,  then 
on  exhibition :  "  Be  it  known  to  all  gentlemen  and 
amateurs  that  .  .  .  every  day  except  Sundays  from 
II  to  12,  should  there  be  no  compulsory  hin- 
drance, 29  pieces  may  be  seen  most  admirably 
painted  and  wonderfully  finished  by  the  skilled  and 
renowned  Mr.  Gerard  Dou,  .  .  .  praying  ...  if 
any  one  finds  pleasure  in  the  art  displayed,  he  will 
be  pleased  to  speak  of  it  to  the  owner."  What  a 
delightfully  unstrenuous  life  this  connotes !  Fancy 
a  city  life  in  which  "  gentlemen  and  amateurs  "  are 
free  to  drop  in  from  eleven  to  twelve  to  look  at  pic- 
tures !  In  the  catalogue  of  this  exhibition  is  allusion 
to  the  Dresden  picture  with  its  cover,  —  the  wine 
cellar  already  described,  —  where  it  is  called  "  a 
double  piece,  on  the  outside  a  curtain,  a  clock,  and 
a  candlestick,  within,  a  candle-light  scene  being  a 
cellar."  It  was  chiefly  through  this  allusion,  to- 
gether with  the  pedigree  of  the  pictures,  that  the 
Dresden  authorities  finally  recognized  the  relation 
between  the  two  panels. 

Other  specimens  of  candle-light  effects,  this  time 
not  confined  to  cellars  and  kitchens,  are  No.  1706, 
a  Girl  Gathering  Grapes,  and  No.  17 12,  a  Girl 
Watering  Flowers  Outside  a  Window.  A  further 
testimony  to  Don's  lack  of  thought  or  effort  to  pro- 
duce verisimilitude,  is  to  be  noticed  in  the  way  in 


344     Ubc  Brt  of  the  IDres&en  (Bailer^ 

which  he  makes  his  people  look  off  away  from  the 
task  in  hand,  reducing  the  attitude  to  a  pos^,  instead 
of  an  employment.  There  is  none  of  the  concentra- 
tion of  Vermeer  of  Delft's  little  green  lady  reading 
her  letter!  Dou's  models  are  self-conscious  and  not 
natural.  There  is  a  good  deal  of  sameness  in  these 
smirking  people  at  windows;  aside  from  the  mar- 
vellous technique  and  atmosphere,  the  pictures  by 
Dou  and  Mieris  are  not  such  as  to  induce  deep 
study.  There  is  some  question  as  to  the  genuine- 
ness of  the  Hermit  Reading. 

Three  of  the  studies  of  old  women  in  Dresden 
are  portraits  of  Rembrandt's  mother.  Rembrandt's 
parents  both  seem  to  have  been  very  accommodating 
in  sitting  as  models  for  him  and  his  pupils.  In  one 
of  these,  the  mother  is  seen  with  her  spectacles  on, 
reading  a  paper,  —  the  colour  scheme  runs  from 
brown  to  dark  red  and  violet.  In  another,  she  holds 
an  open  book,  but,  like  most  of  Dou's  models,  she 
is  looking  up  —  she  is  not  reading.  The  third  study 
shows  her  also  with  a  book,  while  a  wallet  and  a 
drinking-glass  lie  on  the  table  by  her.  The  tones 
in  this  are  cooler  —  soft  blue  and  green  predom- 
inate. 

Little  is  known  of  Gerard  Dou's  death.  As  is 
often  the  case,  the  chief  information  comes  from  the 
burial  register.  On  February  the  ninth,  1675,  there 
is  this  concise  entry :    "  Mr.  Gerrit  Dou,  painter." 


Dutcb  painters  345 

That  is  all  that  is  known  of  the  end  of  this  brilliant 
career. 

Gerard  Don  had  a  fanciful  way  of  signing  his 
name  on  prominent  bits  of  his  pictures :  the  Old 
Schoolmaster  is  signed  on  the  desk;  the  portrait 
of  himself  is  signed  on  the  table;  the  Doctor,  who 
is  looking  into  the  laughing  face  of  the  girl  before 
him,  aiding  his  vision  by  means  of  a  candle,  is 
signed  on  the  chair.  In  the  Girl  Gathering  Grapes, 
the  signature  appears  on  a  bit  of  paper  on  the  sill  of 
the  window.  In  the  Wine  Cellar  it  appears  on  the 
cask. 

We  come  now  to  a  consideration  of  the  jovial 
Jan  Steen.  The  facts  of  his  life  are  clouded  in 
mystery,  with  the  exception  of  a  few  dates,  and  cer- 
tain testimony  to  be  found  in  his  works  regarding 
his  tastes  and  ideals.  He  was  a  member  of  a  very 
respectable  and  worthy  family.  The  fact  that  he  is 
entered  on  the  records  of  the  Leyden  University  as 
a  student  twenty  years  of  age  proves  that  he  must 
have  been  born  in  1626.  He  was  undoubtedly  not 
very  successful  financially,  although  one  of  the  clev- 
erest of  the  genre  painters  of  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury. 

The  English  were  the  first  to  appreciate  Jan 
Steen.  The  Duke  of  Wellington  particularly  ad- 
mired his  works,  and  the  artist  Leslie  considered 
him  the  greatest  genius  of  the  Dutch  painters  of 


346     tTbe  Hrt  of  tbe  2)res^en  6allerp 

familiar  life.  Here  is  an  evidence  of  the  British 
love  for  a  story  in  a  picture. 

Jan  Steen  was  rather  a  convivial  fellow,  not  pru- 
dent in  money  matters,  for  he  sometimes  had  to  pay 
his  wine  merchant  in  pictures!  His  talents  were 
very  varied,  and  his  interests  keen  and  diverse.  He 
was  at  home  in  all  sorts  of  subjects,  from  the  tavern 
brawl  to  the  drawing-room,  and  from  the  evil  pas- 
sions of  men  to  the  joyous  gaiety  of  little  children 
at  play. 

While  he  was  young,  he  was  in  the  studio  of  Van 
Goyen,  whose  daughter  he  married.  Van  Ostade 
also  married  a  daughter  of  Van  Goyen,  so  that  these 
two  painters  came  into  brotherly  relations,  and  were 
probably  congenial.  Steen  was  a  Roman  Catholic, 
but  there  is  no  evidence  that  he  was  a  devout  one. 
His  religious  pictures  are  singularly  feeble. 

One  of  the  few  dates  by  which  we  can  judge  of 
Steen's  whereabouts  is  that  of  1661,  when  he  was 
thirty-five  years  old,  and  was  living  in  Haarlem 
with  his  wife  and  children.  In  1670  an  apothecary 
made  a  raid  on  several  of  his  pictures  in  payment 
of  a  bill  for  drugs  supplied  during  his  wife's  last 
illness,  she  having  died  in  1669.  He  married  again 
in  three  or  four  years. 

It  has  been  said  that  Steen  was  on  friendly  terms 
with  the  devil  even  while  painting  his  cloven  foot! 
Probably  much  of  his  reputation  as  a  drunkard  is 


JAN    STKFN.  THE    MAKRIACI      KIASl     AT    l-ANA 


Dutcb  painters  347 

based  on  the  simple  historic  fact  that,  being  hard 
up,  and  having  a  house  left  to  him  as  a  legacy,  he 
decided  to  use  this  property  by  opening  a  tavern; 
after  all,  a  very  thrifty  way  of  turning  over  his 
investment,  for  art  was  not  a  high-paid  commodity 
in  those  days.  Naturally,  as  a  proprietor  of  a  public 
house,  Jan  Steen  was  frequently  seen  there,  and  un- 
doubtedly made  himself  .as  popular  as  possible  with 
the  guests  :  hence  all  the  reports  of  undue  convivial- 
ity. It  is  not  likely,  however,  that  the  man  to  whom 
the  tavern  meant  bread  and  butter  allowed  himself 
to  become  a  sot.  Also,  the  internal  evidence  of  his 
five  hundred  carefully  finished  and  well-conceived 
pictures  goes  to  prove  that  his  head  must  have  been 
steady  most  of  the  time. 

Unfortunately  we  have  in  Dresden  no  specimen 
of  his  really  characteristic  work.  The  two  chief 
pictures  are  religious  in  name,  —  certainly  in  noth- 
ing else !  and  this  was  the  branch  in  which  he  was 
least  at  ease.  The  Marriage  at  Cana  is  an  absurd 
contemporary  Dutch  revel.  A  fat  purveyor  offers 
wine  to  a  dandified  fiddler,  while,  a  lazy  peasant 
woman  in  disordered  attire  sits  in  the  foreground 
leaning  on  a  cask,  holding  a  cup  of  wine  to  the  lips 
of  a  little  boy.  This  child  -is,  however,  very  charm- 
ing, and  gives  some  idea  of  Steen's  sympathetic 
rendering  of  youthful  forms.  Far  off  in  the  back- 
ground is  seen  the  supper-table,  while  an  extremely 


348      XTbe  Htt  of  tbe  H)res^en  Gallery? 

conventional  figure  of  Our  Lord  with  one  hand 
pointing  upward  and  the  other  downward,  appears 
on  another  flight  of  steps.  The  only  cause  for  con- 
gratulation in  this  composition  is  that  the  artist  evi- 
dently had  the  sense  to  recognize  his  own  limita- 
tions, and  did  not  attempt  to  make  the  sacred  figure 
prominent.  It  is  simple  genre.  The  Mother  and 
Child,  No.  1726,  in  the  seventeenth  cabinet,  is  at- 
tractive, stiff,  and  quaint.  The  Expulsion  of  Hagar, 
however,  on  the  same  wall,  is  a  most  unfortunate 
interpretation  of  the  Scripture  story.  The  blubber- 
ing, short,  stumpy,  blonde  Hagar,  with  a  bare  foot 
larger  than  her  head,  stands  on  the  door-step,  hold- 
ing her  Dutch  apron  to  her  eyes,  while  Abraham, 
with  a  consolatory  pat  on  her  shoulder,  waves  his 
hand  toward  the  door  of  his  dwelling.  Inside  this 
door  Sarah  is  seen,  unnecessarily  hag-like,  huddled 
over  like  an  infirm  octogenarian,  and  the  whole  ar- 
rangement is  so  in  the  seventeenth-century  style, 
—  so  casual,  —  that  one  seems  to  hear  Abraham 
saying  in  a  soothing  voice,  "  You  see  how  I  am 
placed,  my  dear !  "  Ishmael,  a  pretty  boy,  glancing 
out  of  the  corners  of  his  roguish  eyes  at  the  specta- 
tor, is  kneeling  in  the  foreground,  stringing  a  bow. 
In  the  background  is  a  Dutch  barn-yard  enclosed  by 
high  walls.  A  dog  in  the  foreground,  carefully 
painted,  as  if  the  artist  thoroughly  enjoyed  it,  is 


Dutcb  {painters  349 

busily  engaged  in  attacking  fleas.  No  more  ridic- 
ulous anticlimax  could  be  planned. 

Wilkie  has  stated  that  "  ugliness  is  stimulating, 
and  sometimes  serves  to  bring  out  beauties  in  juxta- 
position." This  must  be  the  subtle  spell  which  at- 
tracts us  in  the  tavern  scenes  of  Brouwer,  Steen,  Os- 
tade,  and  others.  When  Tacitus  wrote  his  famous 
treatise  on  Germany  in  the  first  century,  he  made 
mention  of  traits  which  even  now  might  illustrate 
certain  tendencies  in  that  nation,  and  certainly  apply 
to  the  pictures  which  we  have  to  study.  He  says 
the  Germans  are  "  impatient  of  toil  and  labour,  and 
least  of  all  capable  of  sustaining  thirst!  "  In  these 
tavern  scenes  we  can  quote  Tacitus  with  consider- 
able relish. 

Adriaen  van  Ostade,  who  has  been  called  "  Rem- 
brandt in  Little,"  was  himself  an  amiable  and 
quietly  disposed  citizen  with  a  curious  taste  for  por- 
traying scenes  of  hideous  brute  drunkenness  and 
revel.  If  he  had  had  more  soul  in  the  selection  of 
his  subjects,  and  in  their  treatment,  he  would  have 
been  a  great  painter.  As  a  craftsman  he  was  most 
finished.  He  was  born  in  Haarlem  in  1610.  his 
father  being  a  tradesman,  and  he  was  sent  to  study 
with  Frans  Hals,  in  whose  studio  he  became  the 
friend  and  champion  of  poor  little  Brouwer,  who 
was  so  badly  treated  by  the  master.  Ostade  was  a 
member  of  the  Guild  of  St.  Luke;    he  married  a 


35°     tlbe  Brt  ot  tbe  Dresden  Galleri? 

daughter  of  Jan  Van  Goyen,  a  sister  of  the  girl  who 
married  Jan  Steen.  He  was  an  artist  by  profession 
and  every  association.  He  turned  his  attention  to 
rather  unimportant  subjects  for  reproduction.  He 
went  in  early  Hfe  to  Amsterdam,  where  he  painted 
stable  and  field  scenes,  anticipating  somewhat  the 
sentiment  of  the  English  George  Morland. 

He  produced  three  or  four  hundred  pieces  in  oil, 
and  also  worked  in  water-colour.  While  his  pic- 
tures are  all  cleverly  done,  it  would  be  hard  to  point 
to  any  one  and  say,  "  that  is  a  masterpiece."  Wed- 
more  uses  a  happy  expression  in  characterizing  Van 
Ostade.  He  claims  that  he  was  "  alive  to  the  pic- 
turesqueness  of  litter."  This  is  particularly  mani- 
fest in  his  Artist  in  his  Studio,  No.  1397,  in  Dres- 
den, painted  in  1663.  When  one  hears  that  the 
Dutch  artists  seemed  morbid  about  dust,  and  that 
some  of  them  even  waited  some  minutes  after  en- 
tering the  studio  to  let  the  dust  subside  before  com- 
mencing work,  we  must  remember  what  kind  of  a 
place  a  studio  was,  and  it  will  seem  only  a  proper 
precaution!  Surely  a  man  walking  through  Van 
Ostade's  studio  would  have  raised  a  perfect  cloud 
of  dust!  Absolute  untidiness  reigns:  even  the 
brushes  and  paints,  which  in  most  studios  do  receive 
some  attention,  are  simply  dropped  on  the  floor,  or 
stuck  into  any  old  receptacle.  A  painter  who  is 
indifferent  to  every  other  law  of  order  will  usually 


I 

0  '■       ^^ 

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■,.-  JSP^^I^^^                          /, 

ADRIAEN    VAN    OSTADE.  —  THE    ARTIST    IN    HIS    STUDIO 


Dutcb  painters  35 * 

see  to  it  that  his  tools  are  in  condition  for  work : 
it  would  seem  that  Van  Ostade  expected  nothing 
but  a  space  in  which  to  throw  things !  There  is  a 
sheet  suspended  from  the  beams  above,  to  protect 
the  actual  wet  paint  on  his  easel  from  the  dust 
which  probably  fell  when  a  rat  galloped  through  the 
attic.  Van  Ostade  himself  is  seen  sketching  from 
a  lay  figure,  which  is  fixed  in  a  running  position, 
across  the  room.  A  conscientious  little  colour- 
grinder  is  busily  at  work  in  the  next  apartment. 
Rickety  stairs  are  seen  in  the  background,  one 
flight  going  down,  and  another  hardly  more  than 
a  ladder  leading  up  to  the  rafters.  Skulls  and  ant- 
lers, jars  and  portfolios,  chipped  casts  and  rolls  of 
vellum,  abound  all  over  the  floor  and  walls.  It  is 
a  typical  den  such  as  delights  the  soul  of  a  man 
whose  imagination  is  so  active  that  it  is  capable  of 
clothing  a  wooden  model,  and  covering  the  floor 
with  a  green  sward,  while  at  any  moment  the  newel- 
post  becomes  a  fir-tree,  or  the  ceiling  is  invested  with 
thunder-clouds!  Such  a  mind  is  little  affected  by 
the  actual  state  of  the  physical  surroundings. 

In  his  Habitues  of  a  Village  Inn  (No.  1396), 
Van  Ostade  resembles  Teniers  in  general  arrange- 
ment, the  rough  guests  in  the  foreground  being 
seated  around  a  table,  while  the  others  are  seen  in 
the  background.  The  Two  Peasants  Regaling 
Themselves,  No.  1398,  is  a  true  study  of  gluttony. 


352     Ube  Brt  ot  tbe  H)resDen  Galleri? 

The  latest  and  most  interesting  of  his  pictures  in 
Dresden  is  the  well-filled  composition,  Peasants  at 
a  Village  Inn,  No.  1400.  The  merry  rustics  are 
assembled  in  gay  mood,  seated  on  benches  and  in- 
dulging in  beer  and  other  refreshments. 

A  pupil  of  Gerard  Dou  was  Pieter  Cornelisz  van 
Slingelandt,  a  native  of  Leyden,  born  in  1640; 
pretty  upper-class  genre  pictures  by  him  are  the 
Young  Lady  with  an  Unmusical  Dog  and  the  Lady 
at  a  Harpsichord.  The  first  of  these  shows  a  laugh- 
ing girl  well  clothed  in  the  preposterous  Dutch 
winter  dress  of  velvet  trimmed  with  fur,  and  then 
deliberately  cut  low  in  the  neck!  She  holds  in  her 
arms  a  small  spaniel,  apparently  filled  with  indigna- 
tion against  a  young  man  who  leans  over  the  chair 
of  the  lady.  This  gentleman  has  evidently  been 
playing  the  violin,  which  accounts  for  this  violent 
protest  on  the  part  of  the  dog.  Another  objecting 
little  dog  is  seen  in  the  picture  on  the  opposite  wall, 
representing  a  lady  sitting  by  a  window,  through 
which  an  old  woman  is  handing  her  a  fowl. 

Li  Nicolas  Maes  one  sees  the  antithesis  of  Paul 
Potter  and  Raphael,  —  one  has  to  contemplate  the 
man  who  ought  to  have  died  young, — the  man  who 
out-lived  his  success.  Starting  brilliantly,  he  fell  in 
ignomy  into  a  premature  decadence  after  his  with- 
drawal from  the  influence  of  Rembrandt.  Pie  was 
bom  in  Dort  in  1632,  and  in   1650  went  to  study 


H)utcb  painters  353 

with  Rembrandt,  with  whom  he  remained  for  ten 
years,  doing  excellent  genre  work.  When  Jordaens 
asked  Nicolas  Maes  what  line  he  followed  in  art, 
Maes  replied,  "  I  am  but  a  portrait-painter."  He 
had  learned  the  necessary  art  of  flattering  his  sit- 
ters, and  evidently  his  ambition  was  to  be  a  portrait 
artist,  while  in  spite  of  it  he  has  come  down  to 
posterity  as  a  genre  painter.  How  constantly  men 
aspire  to  be  regarded  as  proficient  in  some  art  for 
which  they  have  not  capital  qualifications,  dissatis- 
fied with  the  work  to  which  they  are  in  reality  better 
adapted!  One  cannot  help  recalling  that  wise  little 
verse : 

"  As  a  rule  a  man's  a  fool, 
When  it's  hot  he  wants  it  cool, 
When  it's  cool  he  wants  it  hot,  — 
Always  wants  it  as  it's  not !  " 

So,  unwilling  to  figure  as  a  genre  painter,  in  which 
line  he  displayed  great  ability,  Maes  tried  to  confine 
himself  to  painting  likenesses  only.  He  went  to 
Antwerp,  where  this  degeneration  gradually  over- 
took him.  He  died,  a  great  sufferer  from  gout,  in 
1693,  at  Amsterdam,  where  he  had  returned  in 
1673. 

We  have  only  a  portrait  by  which  to  judge  him 
in  Dresden:  there  is  a  genre  picture,  No.  1643,  in 
the  thirteenth  cabinet,  which  has  been  attributed 
to  him,  but  not  with  certainty. 


354     Ube  Brt  ot  tbe  Dresden  Galleri? 

Gabriel  Metsu  and  Gerard  Ter  Borch  are  to  be 
seen  in  the  sixteenth  room.  At  first  their  works 
seem  similar,  but  certain  distinctive  characteristics 
may  be  noted  upon  closer  examination.  For  one 
thing  Metsu  is  supreme  in  his  comprehension  of  the 
expressive  power  of  the  hand.  His  hands  are  stud- 
ied as  special  subjects,  —  look  at  those  in  the  Young 
Couple  at  Breakfast.  There  is  also,  as  a  rule,  more 
dignity  in  the  work  of  Ter  Borch.  Ter  Borch  has 
made  more  study  of  facial  expression,  and  is  the 
more  intellectual  of  the  two.  As  we  go  from  one 
to  the  other  we  shall  see  various  little  individual 
points  to  note. 

Metsu  loved  red.  In  the  Young  Couple  at  Break- 
fast, the  dashing  red  and  black  gown  of  the  lady  is 
charmingly  contrasted  with  the  blue  and  tan  clothes 
of  the  man.  There  is  hardly  any  reliable  record  of 
Metsu's  life.  Born  probably  in  1630,  it  is  likely 
that  he  lived  to  be  only  a  few  years  over  thirty.  The 
dates  now  generally  conceded  are  1630-  1667.  He 
was  probably  a  pupil  of  Dou  in  Leyden ;  afterward, 
it  is  thought  that  he  came  under  the  influence  of 
Rembrandt  at  Amsterdam.  His  parents  were  also 
both  artistic,  so  that  heredity  and  environment  were 
both  on  the  aesthetic  side.  A  charming  little  panel, 
A  Lady  with  a  Lace  Pillow,  gives  us  again  an  op- 
portunity to  study  these  exquisite  hands  at  work 
so  deftly;  the  night  piece,  No.  1737,  a  Smoker  Sit- 


Dutcb  {painters  355 

ting  by  the  Fire,  is  a  fine  rendering  of  a  dark  room; 
it  has  the  sense  of  depth,  and  suggests  the  possibil- 
ity of  penetrating  farther  into  the  gloom,  which  is 
not  simply  a  dense  shadow. 

Gerard  Ter  Borch  was  a  genuine  pioneer  among 
the  Dutchmen.  He  was  the  first  to  recognize  the 
superiority  of  expression  over  technique.  And  his 
technique  is  no  sufiferer  through  this  knowledge : 
a  certain  breadth  even  on  so  small  a  scale  is  the 
immediate  result,  and  comes  with  welcome  relief 
after  the  feats  of  enamel  finish  which  are  so  char- 
acteristic of  most  of  his  contemporaries.  A  painter 
of  high  life,  with  its  reserve  and  good  breeding  con- 
spicuous in  all  his  little  pictures,  it  is  not  at  all  the 
vain,  vapid  side  of  the  aristocracy  which  he  seizes 
upon,  but  the  more  serious,  genuine,  and  usual  little 
episodes  into  which  his  refined  manner,  and  knowl- 
edge through  personal  experience  (he  having  been 
an  aristocrat  himself),  have  given  him  unusual  in- 
sight. His  treatment  of  white  satin  is  especially 
radiant,  and  he  frequently  introduces  it.  There  is 
a  certain  figure  of  a  woman  clad  in  shimmering 
white  satin  which  occurs  in  his  pictures  in  Paris,  in 
St.  Petersburg,  and  in  Dresden,  —  she  stands  with 
her  back  to  the  spectator,  and  is  evidently  always 
based  upon  the  same  study.  In  Dresden  she  is 
called  "  A  Lady  in  her  Room :  "  beyond  her,  in  the 
shadow,  is  seen  a  bed  with  red  curtains.     There  are 


356     Ubc  Brt  ot  tbe  H)res&en  (Ballerp 

some  very  precious  examples  of  Ter  Borch  in  the 
sixteenth  cabinet;  notably  two  studies  of  soldiers, 
one  an  officer  writing  a  letter,  while  his  trumpeter 
waits  to  take  and  deliver  it,  the  other,  which  might 
be  a  companion  piece,  shows  a  trumpeter,  having 
delivered  a  letter,  which  is  being  read  by  an  officer. 
There  could  not  be  a  more  satisfactory  technique 
than  that  of  Ter  Borch  in  dealing  with  what  one 
might  call  soldiers  in  private  life,  —  that  is,  not  in 
war  subjects.  When  we  come  to  consider  his 
women,  they  certainly  have  very  turned-up  little 
noses ;  but  it  is  not  the  stupid  turn-up  of  the  rustic 
nose,  —  it  is  rather  a  choice,  disdainful  little  nose! 
In  No.  1830,  for  instance,  see  how  chic  and  smug 
the  little  lady  is,  as  she  firmly  washes  her  hands 
under  the  stream  from  the  silver  ewer  held  by  her 
maid.  Perhaps  this  lady  displays  Ter  Borch's  very 
best  satin  gown  of  all,  —  surely  nowhere  has 
gathered  satin  been  more  skilfully  portrayed.  It 
is  not  often  that  one  sees  in  art  so  well  expressed 
the  transitoriness  of  action  as  in  these  tightly 
clasped  hands  —  one  knows  that  there  is  movement, 
that  the  hands  are  closing  on  each  other. 

The  Lady  Playing  a  Lute,  with  her  Cavalier,  is 
charmingly  attired  in  a  blue  jacket  and  a  pink  skirt; 
there  is  much  colour  in  this  lovely  panel :  the  dull 
blue  in  the  hangings  above  is  a  very  good  tone. 

Gerard  Ter  Borch  was  born  at  Zwolle,  in  161 7. 


GERARD    TER    BORCH.  A    LADY    WASHING    HER    HAND; 


Dutcb  painters  357 

His  father  was  a  well-to-do  man,  who  delighted  in 
his  son's  early  manifestations  of  talent. 

He  was  an  infant  prodigy.  His  father  was  very 
proud  of  his  early  efforts,  and  kept  his  childish 
drawings  filed  and  dated.  His  youth  was  passed 
in  the  picturesque  place  of  his  nativity,  —  Zwolle, 
but  when  it  was  time  for  him  to  study  seriously,  he 
was  sent  to  Amsterdam.  His  father's  interest  in 
his  son's  career  never  flagged,  and  his  letters  to 
him  contained  good  advice  as  well  as  practical 
assistance.  One  letter  announces  :  "  I  send  you  the 
manikin,  but  without  the  block  which  should  serve 
as  its  pedestal,  for  this  is  too  large  and  heavy  to 
put  into  the  trunk.  You  can  have  one  made,  how- 
ever, at  slight  cost :  "  then  follows  the  admonition : 
"  Do  not  let  the  manikin  have  too  much  repose,  as 
you  did  here,  but  use  it  continually." 

When  King  William  HI.  visited  Deventer,  in 
1672,  he  had  his  picture  painted  by  Ter  Borch;  it 
is  said  that  he  scarcely  gave  the  painter  time  to 
accomplish  more  than  a  sketch,  but  that  it  was  so 
masterly  and  brilliant  that  an  art  lover  of  Amster- 
dam took  it  in  exchange  for  a  travelling-coach ! 
One  can  readily  understand  how  satisfactory  Ter 
Borch's  portraits  must  have  been  by  looking  at  the 
treatment  of  the  head,  hat,  and  shoulders  of  the 
officer  in  No.  1833.  As  he  sits  there  reading  the 
letter,  with  a  discreet  symptom  of  a  smile  deepen- 


3s8     XTbe  Hrt  ot  tbe  Dresden  Galleri? 

ing  the  corners  of  his  lips  and  the  Hghts  playing 
so  illusively  on  the  various  textures  of  hair,  felt, 
and  cloth,  he  convinces  us  that  the  master  who  could 
deal  in  such  subtleties  would  never  be  at  a  loss  to 
catch  an  individual  expression. 

Ter  Borch  had  the  advantages  of  foreign  travel, 
visiting  France,  Spain,  and  Italy.  Thus  he  was 
able  to  possess  the  gift  of  culture  to  a  rare  degree 
among  his  contemporaries.  He  was  also  in  Eng- 
land for  a  time.  After  his  travels  he  settled  down 
to  good  work  and  he  became  the  favourite  painter 
of  the  aristocracy.  His  home  life  was  simple  and 
perhaps  lonely;  he  had  no  children,  but  when  he 
died,  in  1681,  the  whole  town  of  Zwolle  turned  out 
to  do  honour  at  his  burial  there :  he  was  laid  in  the 
family  vault,  with  "  G.  T.  B."  as  his  only  inscrip- 
tion. 

The  Herring  Eater,  No.  1755,  is  signed  by 
Domenicus  van  Tol,  who  was  a  pupil  of  Dou.  In 
the  ninth  cabinet  there  is  another  "  window  piece  " 
by  him  of  a  woman  winding  yam.  The  Herring 
Eater  is  seen  in  an  arched  window,  with  a  sugges- 
tion of  a  kitchen  interior  beyond.  His  pipe  and  a 
circular  tobacco-box  lie  on  the  sill  by  him. 

A  natural  bit  of  human  life  is  seen  in  the  cook, 
who  is  bargaining  with  a  Dutch  fishwife,  in  the 
picture  called  A  Rotterdam  Fishwife.  The  critical 
attitude  of  the  purchaser,  who  wishes  the  price  re- 


H)utcb  painters  3S9 

duced,  and  the  confident  manner  of  the  seller,  who 
prefers  to  maintain  the  high  figure  which  she  has 
evidently  named,  is  well  contrasted.  There  could 
hardly  be  a  more  typical  little  view  than  that  in  the 
background  of  the  tall  gabled  houses  on  the  still 
water. 

The  minute  still-life  painters,  Rachel  Ruysch  and 
Jan  van  Huysum,  are  to  be  met  in  these  rooms. 
Let  us  commend  them  to  those  who  enjoy  them, 
and  who  are  ambitious  to  perpetuate  such  a  school. 
It  is  certain  that  still  life  undoubtedly  has  its  advo- 
cates. How  often  one  sees  an  uncultured  person 
stand  in  front  of  a  splendid  portrait,  and,  ignoring 
all  else,  exclaim,  "  Oh,  how  beautifully  that  lace  is 
painted !  "  Doctor  Channing  told  of  an  American 
who,  looking  at  a  picture  of  the  Marriage  of  Cana, 
by  a  Spanish  artist,  remarked,  "  Well,  he  was  a  cute 
man  who  made  that  jar!  " 

Melchior  d'Hondecoeter's  Bird  of  Prey  in  a  Poul- 
try Yard  is  a  good  study,  spirited  and  clever.  There 
is  some  thought  here :  an  appreciation,  at  least,  of 
barn-yard  life,  if  the  term  is  not  too  dignified  for 
the  subject!  The  defiant  cock  and  hen,  ready  to 
fight  to  the  death  with  the  base  intruder,  have 
almost  the  human  traits  of  besieged  citizens,  while 
the  tiny  chicken,  so  safely  guarded  between  its 
elders,  makes  just  such  a  show  of  bravery  as  does 
a  soldier's  little  son  when  he   sees  his  father  on 


36o     XTbe  Brt  of  tbe  H)rest)en  Gallery 

parade.  The  hawk  has  clawed  a  small  chicken,  and 
this  act  of  vandalism  is  the  immediate  cause  for  the 
outcry.  Hondecoeter  is  really  the  finest  painter  of 
game,  dead  or  alive,  who  lived  in  that  period :  he 
is  wonderfully  true  to  nature,  and  a  genuine  artist 
in  his  line.  His  detail  is  sincere,  and  no  man  has 
ever  painted  feathers  with  less  objectionable  realism. 
Those  who  enjoy  pictures  of  poultry  will  realize 
his  superiority. 

Cornelis  Bega,  in  his  Dance  in  the  Village  Inn, 
might  have  been  an  inspiration  to  Wilkie  when  he 
composed  his  famous  Blind  Fiddler.  Bega  was  a 
pupil  of  Van  Ostade,  and  his  interpretation  of  rus- 
tic life  is  very  pleasing  and  spirited. 

Jan  Lieven's  Bust  of  a  Young  Warrior  in  profile 
is  beautiful  in  line  and  in  texture.  It  should  not  be 
overlooked  in  the  seventeenth  cabinet.  Here  also 
is  an  interesting  picture,  called  The  Enticement,  in 
which  a  Trumpeter  is  seen  trying  to  detain  a  young 
lady  to  breakfast.  It  is  by  Johannes  Verkolje,  a 
late  seventeenth-century  artist  of  Amsterdam,  and 
the  materials  and  textures  in  the  picture  are  very 
rich.  There  is  also  a  curious  little  picture  by  Hen- 
drik  Pot,  of  a  gentleman  in  black,  standing  in  a 
room.  It  is  rather  striking  in  its  severe  contrasts 
and  singular  lack  of  conventional  balance.  No. 
1 39 1  A  is  a  cheerful  Musical  Entertainment  by 
Jacob  Duck,  a  pupil  of  Hals,  who  painted  in  Haar- 


H)utcb  painters  361 

lem  in  the  seventeenth  century,  dying  in  1660.  The 
composition  is  effective,  and  the  lady  with  a  viol 
at  the  left  is  bewitchingly  pretty. 

Jacob  Ochtervelt,  an  artist  of  Rotterdam  and 
Amsterdam,  painted  a  brilliant  picture  here,  No. 
181 1,  representing  a  gentleman  slicing  a  lemon  into 
a  glass  for  a  lady  who  holds  in  her  lap  a  little  dog. 
A  fascinating  little  girl  is  playing  with  the  pet. 
The  colour  scheme  of  the  picture  is  similar  to  that 
of  Vermeer's  Soldier  and  Lass,  pale  red,  yellow,  and 
white.  The  colours  in  this  instance,  however,  are 
anything  but  flamelike.  The  Turkey  rug  adds  a 
note  of  warm  richness.  The  facial  expressions  are 
excellent.  Sir  Joshua  Reynolds  has  advised  our 
going  to  the  Dutch  school  to  learn  art ;  but  it  is  also 
a  danger  that  we  may  learn  the  vices  of  art,  for  the 
lamp  is  used  instead  of  the  sun  in  their  shadow 
effects. 


CHAPTER   XII. 

MODERN    GERMAN    MASTERS 

The  tendency  of  modern  paintings  to  be  showy 
and  large,  and  often  sensational,  is  due  to  the  fact 
that,  whereas  in  old  days  the  Dutch  masters  painted 
little  gems  to  be  hung  on  the  walls  of  private  houses, 
modern  Germans  and  Frenchmen  have  to  paint  with 
a  public  exhibition  in  view.  If  a  picture  is  placed 
among  hundreds  of  others  in  a  huge  gallery,  it  must 
be  very  striking  in  subject  and  in  colour,  and  usually 
rather  large,  in  order  to  attract  attention.  These 
modern  conditions  make  it  impracticable  for  artists 
to  produce  many  small,  tender  pictures,  —  they  are 
overlooked.  The  artist  must  compete  with  the 
other  producers  of  his  own  day;  as  a  rule  he  must 
dominate  by  some  conspicuous,  popular  quality  if 
he  would  succeed  financially.  This  test  may  be  un- 
fair, but  it  is  a  real  one,  to  which  he  feels  that  he 
must  submit. 

In  1879  there  was  a  great  exhibition  of  modern 
painting  in  Munich,  and  since  that  German  art  has 
shown  much  French  influence,  while  still  retaining 

362 


/IDo^ern  German  /iDasters  3^5 

certain  national  characteristics.  Modern  art  in  Ger- 
many gives  one  at  once  a  very  positive  impression, 
and  that  is,  that  it  is  a  shade  more  modern  than  any 
other  school !  There  is  a  whirl  of  advance,  —  of 
sometimes  exotic  outstretching,  —  but  alw^ays  new, 
original,  and  thoughtful.  At  the  commencement  of 
the  nineteenth  century,  when  French  art  was  follow- 
ing and  developing  and  amplifying  traditions,  Ger- 
man art  simply  broke  loose,  threw  off  the  yoke  of 
tradition,  and  reached  out  for  liberty.  Like  all  very 
independent  movements,  such  individualism  some- 
times fell  into  error,  but  it  erred  from  over-vitality ; 
and  much  can  be  forgiven  when  faults  result  from 
the  mere  over-exertion  of  a  genuine  power.  In  the 
twentieth  century,  —  now,  —  German  art  is  among 
the  most  interesting  aesthetic  expressions  of  the  na- 
tions. When  I  say  interesting  I  do  not  mean  the 
most  finished,  or  successful,  or  satisfying ;  but  it  is 
full  of  mental  and  psychic  expression,  and,  as  a 
human  face,  when  endowed  with  these  two  attri- 
butes, will  often  outshine  a  more  faultless  anatom- 
ical physiognomy,  so  in  art,  these  qualities  lend  a 
certain  resilience  and  charm  to  pictures  which,  on 
a  technical  basis,  we  should  have  to  admit  as  infe- 
rior. Looking  about  among  the  modern  masters  in 
the  Dresden  gallery,  we  shall  understand  this. 

In  trvinq:  to  overthrow  the  voke  of  tradition,  the 
nineteenth-century  Germans  met  with  several  impor- 


364     Ube  Brt  of  tbe  Bresben  (Ballet^ 

tant  losses.  First,  they  lost  the  sense  of  colour. 
Through  a  phase  of  absolute  draughtsmanship,  they 
relinquished,  probably  unconsciously,  their  feeling 
which  had  been  growing  for  centuries,  of  both 
colour  and  atmosphere.  These  two  qualities  elim- 
inated, it  is  not  remarkable  if  their  pictures  were 
hard,  and  coldly  tinted.  Two  chief  charms  of  art 
were  temporarily  lost.  Thus  it  may  almost  be  said, 
although  it  seems  a  paradox,  that  modern  German 
art  began  with  a  decadence. 

Soon  a  striving  after  the  classic  spirit  appeared; 
instead  of  being  simply  copyists  of  the  Greek  types, 
certain  Germans  seemed  to  have  been  positive  re- 
incarnations; the  spirit  which  inspired  the  Greeks 
displayed  itself  in  strictly  novel  forms;  elemental 
thoughts  began  to  be  expressed,  and  elemental  emo- 
tions to  be  felt.  This  is  the  only  way  to  revive 
Greek  art.  There  is  no  use  in  trying  to  design  a 
better  Laocoon  or  Niobe;  the  aim  should  be,  with 
all  appliances  and  powers  of  later  times,  to  find  out 
what  sort  of  aesthetic  spirit  produced  these  master- 
pieces, and  enter  into  that  spirit  fully. 

Soon  artists  began  to  attempt  historical  accuracy. 
Study  of  the  past  was  not  only  study  of  story,  but 
also  of  conditions  and  costume  and  accessories. 
They  were  no  longer  placidly  happy  in  a  Marriage 
at  Cana  taking  place  in  a  Venetian  Palace,  or  in 
a  Holy  Family  enthroned  in  a  Dutch  mansion  with 


/lDot>ern  German  /iDasters  365 

a  view  of  the  canal  and  a  church  out  of  the  window ! 
Realism  in  a  new  sense  developed.  The  Classicists 
in  France  had  recognized  and  applied  these  princi- 
ples, and  in  Germany  the  impulse  toward  verisimili- 
tude began  to  be  felt.  The  idea  of  representing 
scenes  as  they  actually  occurred  caused  a  greater 
interest  than  ever  in  history,  and  less  in  every-day 
life  of  the  present,  until  a  still  later  reaction  came, 
in  favour  of  an  even  more  accurate  realism,  which 
dealt  with  contemporary  life. 

During  the  turbulent  period  between  1813  and 
181 5  much  material  was  furnished  by  the  national 
history,  full  of  stirring  scenes,  and  lending  itself  to 
the  dramatic  spirit  of  the  painters.  Genre  and  con- 
temporary life,  however,  had  played  so  large  a  part 
in  the  art  of  the  eighteenth  century,  that  it  is  not 
to  be  wondered  at  if  for  a  time  it  was  cast  aside. 

The  earliest  cult  of  this  newly  awakened  anti- 
quarian spirit  had  its  centre  in  the  Dresden  Gallery, 
where  its  disciples,  August  William  and  Friedrich 
Schlegel,  took  possession  and  held  sessions  nearly 
every  day,  with  Schelling  and  Gries,  writing  and 
lecturing,  and  propounding  their  convictions.  They 
were  practically  the  German  Pre-Raphaelites.  Their 
literary  organ,  a  publication  entitled  Europe,  set 
forth  the  principles  of  this  new  school,  which  was 
so  strangely  based  on  the  old.  Schlegel  wrote  much 
upon  the  subject.     "  An  evil  genius  has  alienated 


366    trbe  Brt  of  tbe  H^resben  ©aller^ 

artists  from  the  circle  of  ideas  and  the  subjects  of 
the  old  painters,"  he  claimed;  and  he  advised  an 
effort  at  antique  expression.  He  wished  the  painter 
to  "  select  the  style  of  the  old  German  school  as  a 
pattern."  This  was  the  swinging  of  the  pendulum 
from  genre  and  commonplace  subjects  to  the  ex- 
treme of  religious  and  imaginative  subjects.  It  had 
its  impetus,  but  it  had  to  swing  back  again  later! 
This  is  in  accordance  with  the  course  of  the  con- 
stant vibrations  of  artistic  impulses  in  history. 

Early  in  the  nineteenth  century  an  enthusiastic  set 
of  young  artists  went  to  Rome  to  study  Qiristian 
art,  just  as,  in  France,  there  had  grown  up  a  body 
of  painters  who  studied  classic  Rome.  These  men 
were  known  as  the  Nazarenes.  Overbeck,  Cornelius, 
Pforr,  Schadow,  Veit,  and  Julius  Schnorr,  together 
with  Steinle  and  Furich,  formed  a  colony  almost 
like  a  monastic  settlement.  They  lived  for  art 
alone.  They  marketed  and  cooked  for  each  other  in 
turn,  living  the  true  simple  life,  with  plain,  nour- 
ishing food,  their  minds  set  on  higher  things,  and 
discussing  matters  only  relating  to  the  fine  arts. 
They  were  devoted  to  mediaeval  art;  they  shunned 
the  Renaissance,  and  wandered  about  by  twilight, 
communing  upon  aesthetics,  in  a  manner  extremely 
hazardous  in  that  climate.  In  the  evenings  they 
took  turns  in  posing  in  a  Venetian  mantle  which 


FLAW   OP  THE  SECOITO  FLOOR 

22-38-     Masters  of  the  XIX.  Century.    (Chiefly  German,) 


m 


/iDoDern  German  /IDasters  367 

belonged  to  one  of  them,  and  thus  got  practice  in 
drawing  draperies. 

The  Nazarenes  (a  name  bestowed  upon  them  by 
their  Classicist  antagonists  and  intended  to  be 
opprobrious)  gave  up  the  use  of  the  model,  lest  it 
should  tempt  them  to  swerve  from  the  ideal.  To 
avoid  naturalism,  of  which  they  had  a  horror,  they 
painted  as  far  as  possible  by  imagination.  Beauty, 
as  they  interpreted  it,  must  be  different  from  any- 
thing that  actually  existed.  The  school  was  short- 
lived. 

There  is  a  distinction  between  artists  who  are 
painters  for  the  sake  of  colour  and  form  and  those 
who  use  their  art  as  a  medium  for  telling  a  story. 
These  latter  men  are  practically  illustrators.  They 
occupy  a  desirable  place  in  the  world,  but  may  ac- 
complish their  aims  without  being  really  great  paint- 
ers, while  some  of  the  most  brilliant  artists  are  not 
narrators. 

Before  going  with  any  system  through  the  rooms 
on  the  upper  floor  of  the  Dresden  gallery,  where  the 
modern  paintings  are  hung,  let  us  look  first  into 
No.  31,  and  then  in  No.  23  (they  are  just  at  our 
right  and  left  as  we  arrive  at  the  top  of  the  stairs), 
and  notice  the  pictures  by  the  early  Nazarenes ;  all 
we  have  of  the  work  of  this  body  of  men.  by  Cor- 
nelius and  Julius  Schnorr.  These  men,  with  their 
intensely   mediaeval   tastes    and   convictions,    while 


368     ube  Hrt  of  tbe  S)res&en  aallerp 

lacking  in  all  that  makes  art  live  through  changes 
of  time  and  space,  are  represented  very  inadequately 
here. 

Peter  von  Cornelius  was  born  in  Diisseldorf  in 
1783,  and  spent  his  first  years  as  a  pupil  at  the  old 
academy  there.  Of  his  idealistic  Roman  w^ork  we 
have  no  opportunity  of  judging,  for  he  is  seen  here 
only  in  portraiture :  his  likeness  of  Godfried  Malss, 
painted  in  Frankfort  about  18 10.  Cornelius  was 
one  of  the  leaders  of  the  Nazarenes.  When  they 
were  entrusted  with  a  really  important  work  of 
fresco-painting  in  the  Villa  Massina  and  Casa 
Bartholdi,  Cornelius  was  one  of  the  chief  perform- 
ers. When  the  frescoes  were  unveiled  in  1819,  the 
German  artists  had  a  brilliant  festival  in  Rome, 
which  is  said  to  have  been  strictly  mediaeval  in  its 
costuming  and  setting.  The  Crown  Prince  Ludwig 
was  present,  and  it  was  a  gala  occasion.  Prince 
Ludwig  was  delighted  with  Cornelius.  "  There  has 
been  no  such  painter,"  he  enunciated,  "  since  the 
Cinquecento."  He  employed  him  to  paint  largely 
in  Munich,  believing  that  German  art  had  at  last 
arrived  at  its  true  expression.  This  work  was 
simply  a  revival  of  Italian  decadence.  He  was  an 
extreme  eclectic,  but  all  the  qualities  which  he  bor- 
rowed were  carried  to  excess.  He  was  more  ram- 
pant than  Michelangelo ;  he  was  more  sweet  than 
Raphael.     There  was  no  message  for  posterity  in 


/IDoDern  German  /iDasters  369 

art  like  this :  it  was  not  for  the  good  of  his  follow- 
ers that  he  was  Principal  of  an  Academy.  King 
Ludwig,  however,  regarded  him  in  the  light  of  a 
great  discovery.  "  Cornelius  was  born  to  be  the 
head  of  a  school  of  painting,"  affirmed  this  mon- 
arch. Cornelius  was  Director  of  the  Academy  of 
Diisseldorf  and  Munich,  going  finally  to  Berlin, 
where  he  died  in  1867.  He  developed  the  national 
subjects,  illustrating  the  Rhine  legends  and  Faust, 
proving  himself  a  true  disciple  of  the  spirit  of  Al- 
brecht  Diirer.  Many  of  his  frescoes  are  to  be  seen 
in  the  Loggia  of  the  jMunich  art  gallery.  He  be- 
came professor  here  in  1825. 

The  personal  appearance  of  Cornelius  is  thus  de- 
scribed by  a  pupil  upon  first  meeting  him.  "  He  is 
quite  a  little  man,  in  a  blue  shirt  and  a  red  belt.  He 
looks  very  stern  and  distinguished,  and  his  black 
gleaming  eyes  impress  you !  "  This  pupil  had  come 
across  the  master  at  work  in  a  public  building.  He 
was  up  on  a  scaffolding,  but  "  descended  from  his 
throne,  changed  his  blue  smock  for  an  elegant  frock 
coat,  drank  a  glass  of  water  with  an  easy  manner, 
and  made  my  flesh  thrill  with  a  short  explanation 
of  what  had  been  painted  and  what  was  still  to  be 
done,  tucked  a  few  writing-books  under  his  arm, 
and  went  upon  his  business  to  the  Academy." 

Cornelius  despised  accurate  knowledge.  His  doc- 
trine was  to  study  Homer,  Shakespeare,  Goethe,  and 


37°     Ube  Hrt  ot  tbe  Dresben  (Ballerp 

the  Bible;  "  the  brush,"  he  would  say,  "  has  become 
the  ruin  of  our  art.  It  has  led  from  nature  to  man- 
nerism." By  way  of  adhering  to  nature,  Cornelius 
was  guilty  of  painting  a  Greek  hero  with  six  fingers 
in  one  of  his  frescoes.  When  this  was  pointed  out 
his  only  answer  was :  "  And  if  I  had  given  him 
seven,  how  would  it  affect  the  general  idea?  " 

A  criticism  on  the  unpractical  side  of  the  life  of 
these  men  in  Rome  appears  in  a  letter  from  Niebuhr 
in  1816:  he  said:  "  Cornelius  has  a  wife  and  two 
children.  He  is  very  poor,  because  he  labours  for 
conscience  and  his  own  satisfaction,  and  purchasers 
for  works  of  such  high  standard  are  not  to  be 
found."  Niebuhr  proved  himself  a  kind  friend  to 
the  struggling  artists.  Bunsen  tells  that  "  Corne- 
lius and  Platner,  each  with  his  wife  and  each  pair 
having  two  infant  daughters,  were  lodged  in  a 
house  .  .  ,  which  had  been  hired  by  Niebuhr  for 
them  for  the  summer  months."  While  Niebuhr  was 
in  a  Diplomatic  position  in  Rome,  he  was  so  fortu- 
nate as  to  discover  some  valuable  manuscripts  in  the 
Vatican  :  he  wrote  to  an  influential  English  lady : 
"  I  should  like  to  sell  them  in  England  for  a  good 
price,  by  way  of  earning  some  money  for  our  young 
artists.  Among  these  there  are  some  really  excel- 
lent young  men  who  are  languishing  for  means  of 
cultivating  their  talents,  and  are  hard  put  to  it  for 
their   daily   bread.      I    should   like  to   get   enough 


/IDo^ern  (Berman  /iDasters  371 

money  to  set  a  few  of  them  to  paint  a  fresco  in  the 
Library." 

Mr.  Beavington  Atkinson  gives  an  amusing  de- 
scription of  the  German  artists  in  Rome ;  he  says : 
"  On  successive  visits  to  Rome  I  have  always  found 
the  Germans  in  sufficient  force  to  assume  a  distinct- 
ive NationaHty  .  .  .  the  Cafe  Greco  has  been  their 
resort,  a  place  renowned  for  coffee,  tobacco,  noise, 
and  dirt.  The  .  .  .  Germans  enter  as  a  bois- 
terous crew,  accompanied  occasionally  by  a  rough 
dog  .  .  .  they  are  bearded,  sturdy  fellows  .  .  .  the 
German  guttural  and  the  American  brogue  break 
into  a  republic  of  discord,  glor}dng  in  the  biggest 
of  words  and  the  thickest  of  smoke.  .  .  .  German 
artists  in  Rome  are  gregarious,  and  somewhat  Bohe- 
mian; they  congregate  promiscuously,  they  talk 
freely  of  what  they  are  painting,  without  fear  of 
plagiarism  .  .  .  they  meet  as  '  hail  fellows  w^ell 
met : '  they  are  kindly  in  heart,  in  the  hour  of  weal 
they  show  themselves  joyous,  in  woe  they  lend  to  a 
brother  a  helping  hand." 

Julius  Schnorr  von  Carolsfeld  was  born  in  Leip- 
zig in  1794.  He  worked  in  Rome,  too,  as  has  been 
stated,  and  his  picture,  the  Family  of  St.  John  the 
Baptist  Visiting  the  Holy  Family  in  a  Rose  Garden, 
shows  how  much  Italian  influence  had  to  do  with 
the  art  of  these  Germans,  who,  in  spite  of  it,  retain 
the  national  sentiment,  too.     After  his  work  at  the 


372     XTbe  Hrt  ot  tbe  S)res&en  (Bailer^ 

Villa  Massina  in  Rome,  he  executed  the  decorations 
in  the  halls  of  the  Palace  in  Munich,  with  the  Nibe- 
lungen  stories :  after  which  he  went  to  Dresden, 
where  he  was  Director  of  the  Gallery.  He  died 
there  in  1846.  When  Schnorr  made  his  famous 
set  of  Biblical  illustrations,  the  painters  of  Dresden 
turned  out  to  show  their  appreciation  of  his  achieve- 
ment :  they  gave  him  a  magnificent  celebration  in 
1862.  He  was  presented  on  this  occasion,  which 
was  a  regular  Jubilee,  with  a  very  beautiful  Bible, 
a  splendid  writing-table,  and  a  handsome  drinking- 
cup;  while  the  Municipality  so  far  recognized  his 
importance  as  to  make  him  a  Doctor  of  Divinity, 
and  to  give  him  the  Freedom  of  the  City.  The  por- 
trait of  Schnorr,  by  Leonhard  Gey,  No.  2279  A, 
may  be  seen  here.  Gey  was  a  pupil  of  Schnorr, 
afterward  professor  at  Dresden. 

Then  followed  Rethel  and  Schwind,  the  commer- 
cial Schwind,  whose  reply  to  a  compliment  has  gone 
on  record :  an  admirer  congratulated  him  upon 
being  the  creator  of  an  original  German  romantic 
ideal,  and  Schwind  replied,  "  My  dear  sir,  to  me 
there  are  only  two  kinds  of  pictures,  those  sold  and 
those  unsold.  To  me  the  sold  are  always  the  best. 
Those  are  my  entire  aesthetics !  "  No  one  ever  so 
maligned  himself  as  Schwind  on  this  occasion!  It 
is  to  be  regretted  that  there  is  no  opportunity  in 
the  Dresden  gallery  to  study  some  of  his  exquisite 


/IDo^ern  (Berman  /iDasters  373 

elfin  creations,  his  subtle  interpretations  of  Nature 
with  httle  woodland  creatures  interjected  as  if  quite 
by  accident;  tiny  nymphs  which  seem  parts  of  the 
foliate  formations,  and  little  sprites  full  of  the  spirit 
of  the  old  legends  of  the  Rhine  and  the  Black  For- 
est. He  is  a  forerunner  of  the  delights  of  Bocklin, 
with  whom  we  shall  make  acquaintance  later. 

Anselm  Feuerbach's  Virgin  and  Child  with  Mu- 
sical Instruments  shows  the  Renaissance  of  colour 
in  the  early  nineteenth-century  school  of  Germany. 
Feuerbach  was  one  of  the  first  Germans  who  rec- 
ognized the  importance  of  going  to  France  again  in 
order  to  try  and  resuscitate  the  colour  sentiment  in 
art,  which  had  so  considerably  died  out.  His  work 
has  been  characterized  as  "  Parisian  design  strug- 
gling with  Venetian  grandeur,"  and  one  can  see 
what  is  meant  by  this  criticism.  He  was  born  at 
Speier  in  1827,  and  studied  at  Diisseldorf  and  Ant- 
werp, becoming  later  a  professor  in  the  Vienna 
Academy.  Feuerbach  was  a  many-sided  character : 
he  was  diffuse,  and  therefore  lacked  concentration. 
He  was  of  a  sensitive,  almost  feminine,  nature,  with 
a  soul  full  of  music,  capable  of  interpreting  his 
model,  as  it  were,  so  that  from  a  common  modern 
figure  he  could  evolve  Classic  or  Mediaeval  grace 
and  feeling. 

Like  all  artists  with  genius,  he  was  misunderstood 
by  the  mundane  people  about  him.    He  had  the  faith 


374     Ube  Brt  of  tbe  Bresben  Gallery 

bred  of  certainty  that  his  own  work  would  some  day 
meet  with  appreciation,  but  that  is  not  a  very  com- 
forting conviction  while  one's  contemporaries  are 
laughing!  He  used  to  say:  "  After  fifty  years  my 
pictures  will  possess  tongues,  and  they  will  tell  the 
world  what  I  was  and  what  I  meant."  Perhaps  this 
lack  of  recognition  was  the  reason  for  the  pensive 
note  which  pen-ades  his  work.  Even  his  Greeks 
are  not  glad.  Tender  and  mournful  faces,  and  atti- 
tudes suggestive  of  dejection,  are  seen  in  most  of 
his  compositions.  His  very  colour,  which,  in  his 
early  days,  was  cheerful  and  free,  grew  sombre,  as 
his  life  drew  to  a  close.  His  psychological  history 
may  be  read  through  his  pictures.  Saddened,  strug- 
gling against  fate,  he  went  unappreciated  to  his 
grave.     He  died  in  a  hotel  in  Venice  quite  alone. 

The  bust  of  a  Jew  with  a  black  beard,  No. 
2225,  is  by  Julius  Hiibner,  an  artist  without  great 
force  in  producing  pictures,  but  an  excellent  critic 
and  professor.  He  was  a  pupil  at  Diisseldorf,  and 
then,  after  being  a  professor,  became  director  of 
the  Dresden  Gallery,  and  was  the  author  of  its 
catalogue  from  1856  to  1884.  Hiibner  was  also 
a  Ph.  D.,  and  a  learned  man.  The  "  Golden  Age  " 
is  also  by  his  hand.  Dresden  has  always  had  a 
charming  habit  of  showing  its  appreciation  for 
her  artists.  When  Hiibner's  golden  wedding  ar- 
rived, his  pupils  and  friends  met  to  celebrate  the 


/IDobern  (Berman  /IDasters  375 

occasion,  and  surrounded  him,  eager  to  testify  to 
their  devotion  with  gifts  and  congratulations. 

Ludwig  Richter,  a  beloved  artist,  popular,  rest- 
ful, refined,  was  born  in  Dresden  in  1803.  His 
position  in  art  is  rather  an  enviable  one :  the  inno- 
cent, glad,  and  childlike  qualities  make  a  genuine 
appeal.  Listen  to  his  words  in  a  letter,  —  how 
calm  and  peaceful  his  ways  would  appear!  "I 
am  certainly  living  here  (in  Dresden),  in  a  rather 
circumscribed  fashion,  but  in  a  very  cheerful  posi- 
tion outside  the  town,  and  I  am  writing  you  this 
letter  —  it  is  Sunday  afternoon  —  in  a  shady  ar- 
bour, with  a  long  row  of  blooming  rose-bushes 
before  me.  Now  and  then  they  are  ruffled  by  a 
pleasant  breeze,  which  is  also  the  cause  of  the  big 
blot  being  on  this  sheet,  as  it  blew  the  page  over." 
What  a  flavour !  Which  of  us  does  not  recall  some 
sweet  June  day  in  a  walled  garden  or  shady  park, 
when  we  have  sat  down  to  write,  and  observed  this 
same  phenomenon  of  the  breeze  turning  the  page! 
It  comes  as  an  invitation  to  idleness,  to  quiet  con- 
templation, filled  with  nothing  but  peaceful  sights 
and  humming  sounds,  while  the  scent  of  the  roses 
will  come  back  if  one  only  closes  one's  eyes!  Who- 
ever has  missed  this  sensation  —  this  languid  thrill 
of  summer  —  has  not  yet  lived  all  sides  of  life. 

Richter's  grandfather  was  a  copper-plate  en- 
graver,  and   the  boy  was  much   with  him.     The 


376     XTbe  art  ot  tbe  H)resDen  Callers 

sweetness  which  often  results  from  a  child's  pass- 
ing his  life  among  the  aged  is  evident  in  Richter's 
sentiment.  His  art,  as  he  himself  understood  it, 
"  never  entered  among  the  lilies  and  roses  on  the 
summit  of  Parnassus,"  but  "  travellers  who  rested 
by  the  wayside  were  glad  of  it."  On  his  eightieth 
birthday,  the  old  painter  thus  summed  up  his  own 
thoughts.  One  feels  through  his  art  and  his  per- 
sonality the  delightful  note  of  "  cosiness "  and 
tender  friendship.  A  great  American  once  pass- 
ing a  bill-poster  which  advertised  "  A  Fair  for  the 
Benefit  of  Incurable  Children,"  exclaimed,  "  I 
ought  to  benefit  by  that !  I'm  an  incurable  child !  " 
In  the  same  sense  this  might  be  said  of  Ludwig 
Richter.  He  was  an  incurable  child!  The  spring 
of  perpetual  youth  welled  up  in  his  heart  to  bless 
him.  Health  and  contentment  are  the  messages 
which  he  has  spoken  to  those  who  have  come  after 
him.  Dresden  was  his  home,  and  he  lived  there 
until  his  death  in  1884. 

His  early  training  under  the  copper-plate  en- 
graver is  evident  in  his  minute  finish  and  delicate 
lines.  His  Ferry  Across  the  Elbe  near  Aussig 
is  certainly  a  poetic  conception:  it  may  be  almost 
denominated  as  a  poetic  license!  It  displays  a 
boat  full  of  romantic  and  languishing  peasants; 
one  plays  the  harp,  one  stands  in  contemplation  of 
the  rugged  castle  which  rises  from  the  shore,  lean- 


/IDo^ern  6erman  /IDasters  377 

ing  his  hands  on  the  top  of  his  staff,  and  one  foot 
on  the  gunwale  of  the  boat;  a  dejected  young 
man  sits  on  the  front  seat,  looking  into  the  water, 
while  behind  him  a  proposal  of  marriage  is  appar- 
ently taking  place  between  two  young  people,  who 
are  quite  oblivious  of  the  little  girl  standing  directly 
behind  them,  and  watching  them  curiously.  A 
little  cloying  is  the  romance  in  this  boat-load. 

But  in  the  Bridal  Procession  in  a  Spring  Land- 
scape, the  redundant  sentimentality  disappears.  It 
is  as  fresh  and  virginal  as  the  dear  little  bride  who 
leans  so  coyly  on  the  arm  of  her  boy  husband,  as 
they  come  into  the  clearing  through  the  woods. 
The  innocent,  happy  expression  of  these  two  pretty 
little  beings  is  positively  wholesome,  and  the  whole 
picture  seems  to  twitter  with  the  tenderness  of 
spring  and  youth.  The  mother  and  father  follow 
the  bride  and  groom,  the  father  jocund  and  proud, 
the  mother  happy  and  resigned.  The  thoroughly 
German  flavour  of  this  picture  is  one  of  its  chief 
charms.  The  graceful  children  with  wreaths  on 
long  sticks,  the  distant  goatherd  cheering  the  pro- 
cession as  it  emerges  from  the  thicket,  and  the  two 
white  doves  circling  in  the  air,  near  a  clearing 
through  which  the  little  mountain  chapel  is  visible, 
—  all  this  is  as  redolent  of  the  Fatherland,  as  are 
the  fir-trees  and  the  little  woodland  flowers.  No 
Pre-Raphaelite   ever  painted   more  exquisitely   de- 


378     ube  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresden  Gallery 

tailed  foliage.  In  technical  perfection  it  is  posi- 
tively a  tour  de  force,  and  should  be  examined 
closely  and  lovingly;  it  exhales  a  certain  spirit 
which  is  all  its  own  and  Richter's. 

Gustav  Kuntz's  Greeting  from  the  Outside 
World  —  a  nun  in  her  cell,  leaning  on  the  window- 
sill,  her  cheek  resting  against  her  hands  —  tells  the 
story  of  unsatisfied  longing,  as  the  young  and 
beautiful  face  turns  itself  to  look  out  on  the  beau- 
ties of  the  world. 

Robert  Kummer's  Sunset  on  the  Coast  of  Scot- 
land looks  more  like  an  eclipse,  the  sun  being  a  mere 
spot  in  the  distance,  while  an  undue  amount  of 
darkness  has  settled  around.  Kummer  was  a  Dres- 
den Academy  professor,  living  from  1810  to  1889. 

Jacob's  Land  of  Promise,  by  Carl  Peschel,  is  a 
view  of  the  desert,  which  is  finely  done :  the  angels 
spoil  the  composition.  Eliminate  them,  and  the 
study  would  be  excellent. 

Friedrich  Preller's  fantastic  picture  here  repre- 
sents a  centaur  carrying  off  a  nymph.  Preller  was 
one  of  the  ideal  landscape  artists  of  the  first  half 
of  the  nineteenth  century.  In  the  twenty-fifth  room 
will  be  seen  another  of  his  pictures,  a  Norwegian 
Coast  Scene.  Preller  was  fond  of  portraying  land- 
scape with  mythological  figures,  being  a  true  lover 
of  things  classical. 

A  pretty  bit  of  genre  is  Ritscher's  Visit  to  the 


/iDo^ern  (Berman  /iDasters  379 

Nurse.  The  little  befrilled  child  is  taken  to  the 
home  of  her  foster-mother,  and  is  trying  to  make 
up  her  mind  to  shake  hands  with  the  bluff  young 
peasant  woman,  whose  lap  is  filled  with  carrots  and 
turnips.  The  nurse's  own  child,  the  little  maiden's 
foster-brother,  sits  on  the  floor,  with  his  bare  feet 
out  ahead  of  him,  playing  with  a  toy  horse. 

Rudolf  Jordan  is  characteristically  represented 
by  his  picture  in  the  twenty-fourth  room ;  he  and 
his  contemporary,  Ritter,  devoted  themselves  largely 
to  the  study  of  North  German  fisher  life.  He  is 
one  of  the  painters  who  grew  up  with  Lessing,  and 
more  or  less  under  his  influence.  He  was  born  in 
18 10  at  Berlin;  he  studied  in  the  Diisseldorf  Acad- 
emy, afterward  becoming  a  professor.  He  died 
there  in  1887. 

There  is  some  charm  about  the  pictures  of  Dres- 
den by  Carl  von  Leypold,  who  was  born  in  this  city 
in  1806,  and  lived  there,  being  honorary  member 
of  the  Academy,  until  his  death  in  1874.  The 
view  of  the  old  Mercury  Bastion  from  the  Marien- 
strasse  is  a  very  good  picture,  well  painted  and 
with  much  local  interest. 

Interesting  especially  for  all  that  its  subject  con- 
notes, is  the  picture  by  Theobald  von  Oer,  entitled 
Giovanni  Bellini's  \^isit  to  the  Studio  of  Albrecht 
Diirer  in  Venice.  Oer  was  a  Westphalian,  but  a 
pupil  of  both  Diisseldorf  and  Dresden.     He  died  in 


38o     Zbc  Hrt  ot  tbe  Bres^en  (Bailer^ 

1885.  The  venerable  Venetian  paying  his  com- 
pliments to  the  young  Northern  painter  is  a  sig- 
nificant moment  for  an  artist's  selection,  and  Oer 
has  treated  it  with  some  appreciation.  Albrecht 
Diirer,  living  in  Venice,  wrote  to  his  beloved  friend, 
Pirkheimer,  in  Nuremberg :  "  My  French  mantle 
and  my  Italian  coat  greet  you,  both  of  them.  I  wish 
you  were  in  Venice.  There  are  many  fine  fellows 
here  among  the  painters,  who  get  more  and  more 
friendly  with  me:  it  holds  one's  heart  up.  Well 
brought-up  folks,  good  lute-players,  skilled  pipers, 
and  many  noble  and  excellent  people  are  in  the 
company.  On  the  other  hand,  there  are  the  falsest, 
most  lying,  thievish  villains  in  the  whole  world, 
I  believe,  appearing  to  the  unwary  the  pleasantest 
possible  fellows.  I  laugh  to  myself  when  they  try 
it  with  me!"  Diirer  was  canny;  he  knew  the 
world,  with  his  steady,  cool  Northern  temperament, 
among  the  warm-blooded  sons  of  the  Lagoons. 
"  They  say  my  art  is  not  on  the  antique,"  he  con- 
tinues, "  and  therefore  not  good.  But  Giovanni 
Bellini,  who  has  praised  me  much  before  many 
gentlemen,  wishes  to  have  something  from  my 
hand.  He  has  come  himself  and  asked  me,  and  he 
will  pay  me  handsomely  for  it.  I  understand  he 
is  a  pious  man.  He  is  very  old  indeed,  and  yet 
among  the  best  amongst  them."  The  picture  shows 
the  well-known  figure  of  Albrecht  Diirer  with  his 


/IDo^ern  Oerman  /IDasters  3S1 

long  hair,  standing  before  his  easel,  on  which  is 
seen  his  Madonna  of  the  Rose  Garlands,  which  is 
now  in  Vienna.  The  aged  Bellini's  tall  but  bent 
figure  is  to  be  seen,  and  he  shows  a  deep  interest 
in  the  progress  of  his  young  neighbour's  work. 

Delightful  in  drawing  and  crisp  in  touch  is 
Moritz  Miiller's  Child  Reading.  The  intent  little 
face  and  the  eyes  so  accurately  focussed  on  the  page 
make  it  a  picture  to  be  noticed.  Observe,  too,  how 
charmingly  the  hair  is  rendered.  The  differen- 
tiation of  the  textures  is  quite  remarkable. 

A  pretty  study  by  Paul  Kiessling  is  the  head  of 
Mignon;  it  is  more  appropriate  for  the  decoration 
of  a  handkerchief-box  than  for  any  other  purpose, 
still,  it  is  a  face  with  a  certain  sweet  appeal,  and 
should  not  be  overlooked  as  one  passes  through  the 
twenty-fifth  room. 

Human  nature  in  a  monastery  is  exploited  in  the 
picture  by  Griitzner,  a  IMunich  Academy  professor, 
who  has  frequently  turned  his  wit  upon  the  infinite 
possibilities  of  the  ascetic  life.  In  this  case,  the  hu- 
mour lies  in  the  expression  of  the  older  monk,  who 
sees  that  two  younger  ones  have  discovered  an 
entertaining  book  in  the  library.  Probably  he  him- 
self is  familiar  with  the  volume! 

A  Coast  Scene  by  Andreas  Achenbach  may  be 
observed  in  this  room,  while  in  the  next.  No.  26, 
there  is  a  moonlight  effect  of  a  fishing  village.    One 


382     XTbe  Hrt  ot  tbe  S)i:est)en  (Balleri? 

must  not  forget,  simply  because  his  pictures  are 
not  now  in  the  same  school  as  those  of  younger 
painters,  that  in  his  prime  he  was  quite  a  pioneer. 
He  appears  now  a  little  intentionally  pictorial,  yet 
his  work  is  quite  realistic.  The  worst  thing  one 
can  accuse  him  of  is  not  being  quite  "  up  to  date," 
and  time  may  show  —  it  has  before  —  that  this 
is  a  forgivable  shortcoming.  Andreas  Achenbach, 
born  in  Cassel  in  18 15,  can  hardly  be  claimed  as 
a  twentieth-century  painter,  although  living  when 
the  century  opened;  of  the  nineteenth  century  he 
has  seen  all  phases,  and  his  art  has  held  its  own 
in  the  line  which  he  selected.  He  had  interest  in 
pageantry;  he  was  the  chief  mover  in  a  fete  given  by 
the  Paint-box  Club  to  the  Emperor  and  Empress. 
It  is  said  that  when  the  fairy  boat  which  he  had 
constructed  came  upon  the  scene,  the  Emperor  shed 
tears.  "  I  have  seen  many  festas,"  he  exclaimed, 
"  but  this  surpasses  all."  Achenbach  arranged  the 
drop-curtain  which  fell  occasionally  during  the  per- 
formance :  it  was  a  study  of  clouds,  and  was  said 
to  be  most  effective.  The  "  Kaiserfest  "  was  wit- 
nessed by  two  thousand  five  hundred  persons. 

Carl  Spitzweg  was  an  original  painter  of  genre 
subjects.  He  was  born  in  Munich  in  1808,  and 
was  almost  self-taught.  This  fact  no  doubt  helped 
his  work  to  have  the  individual  quality  which  dis- 
tinguishes  it.      The   picturesque   Road    to    Church 


/IDobern  (Berman  /IDasters  3^3 

near  Dachau  is  his.  The  homely  rustic  expression 
of  his  pictures  may  be  seen  here,  although  there 
is  none  of  the  imaginative  "  hobgoblinry  "  in  which 
he  also  frequently  indulges.  Sometimes  he  is  al- 
most as  fantastic  as  Bocklin,  but  his  dreams  have 
less  virility,  and  his  monsters  are  more  conven- 
tional and  less  unexpected  in  their  anatomical 
freaks.  Spitzweg  was  an  apothecary  for  some 
time;  not  until  he  was  thirty  years  of  age  did  he 
feel  the  call  of  the  aesthetic  side  of  his  nature  to  be 
irresistible.  When  he  finally  devoted  himself  to 
painting,  he  remained  in  an  attic  room  for  a  studio, 
with  no  luxurious  appointments,  in  the  old  part 
of  Munich,  taking  his  subjects  from  the  life  about 
him,  when  he  did  not  revel  in  the  creations  of  his 
typically  Teuton  fancy.  He  was  keenly  sensitive 
to  colour  effects;  his  work  is  always  harmonious 
in  this  respect.  Often  his  pictures  gleam  in  posi- 
tively daring  flashes  of  red  and  green.  Spitzweg, 
as  a  part  of  his  education,  visited  Italy,  Holland, 
and  England.    He  died  in  Munich  in  1885. 

A  good  study  of  sheep  is  the  picture  by  Otto 
Gebler,  One  of  the  Seven  Sleepers,  which  shows  a 
flock  of  sheep  in  a  barn,  having  suddenly  come 
upon  a  little  tired  shepherd  lad  asleep  in  a  rude 
bed,  upon  which  also  the  dog  is  curled  up  keeping 
watch.  The  inquiring  attitude  of  a  black  sheep 
in  the  foreground  is  excellent. 


384     Ube  Hrt  ot  tbe  2)rest)en  (Bailer^ 

Benjamin  Vautier,  who  is  classed  with  Knaus, 
and  who  also  superficially  resembles  Defregger  in 
his  choice  of  subjects,  is  characteristic  in  his  pic- 
ture, A  Pause  in  a  Dance  at  an  Alsatian  Wedding. 
The  colouring  is  a  secondary  consideration  with 
him;  his  pictures  are  drawings  which  are  coloured, 
rather  than  schemes  of  chromatic  harmony.  He 
is  informal  and  straightforward  in  his  rendering 
of  genre  life,  rather  more  so  than  Knaus. 

The  famous  Ludwig  Knaus,  who  was  born  in 
Wiesbaden  in  1829,  and  who  still  paints  in  BerHn, 
where  he  is  head  of  a  studio,  painted  the  amusing 
Life  of  a  Rope  Dancer  behind  the  Scenes,  which  is 
in  the  twenty-sixth  room.  Perhaps  no  modern 
artist  is  more  widely  known  to-day,  through  his 
charming  Holy  Family,  or  his  dear  little  chubby 
child  upon  whom  the  geese  are  making  so  uncere- 
monious an  attack,  or  his  rural  scenes;  his  works 
are  familiar  in  home  and  school,  and  he  is  not  only 
popular  but  really  beloved  by  many  of  his  admir- 
ers. It  is  easy  to  see  what  an  impression  he  made 
even  as  early  as  1855,  when  Edmund  About  wrote 
of  him  in  such  a  sympathetic  strain  :  "  I  do  not 
know  whether  Herr  Knaus  has  long  nails;  but 
even  if  they  were  as  long  as  those  of  Mephistoph- 
eles,  I  should  still  say  that  he  was  an  artist  to  his 
fingers'  ends !  His  pictures  please  the  Sunday  pub- 
lic, and  the  Friday  public,  the  critics,  the  bourgeois, 


/IDoDern  German  /iDasters  385 

and  —  God,  forgive  me !  the  painters.  .  .  .  The 
most  incompetent  eyes  are  attracted  by  his  pictures 
because  they  tell  pleasant  anecdotes;  but  they  like- 
wise fascinate  the  most  jaded  by  perfect  execution 
of  detail." 

In  the  work  of  Knaus  the  popular  appeal  is 
strong:  much  is  sacrificed,  as  a  recent  critic  has 
remarked,  "  to  sentiment  and  familiar  realism." 
Still,  the  work  is  good,  and  the  subjects  sympa- 
thetic, with  power  of  selection  which  proclaims  an 
artist  who  knows  the  popular  mind  and  also  the 
intellectual  demand.  The  picture  by  which  we  are 
to  judge  Knaus  in  Dresden  is  one  of  his  most 
entertaining.  It  is  a  view  behind  the  scenes  in  a 
travelling  show.  By  the  tattered  hangings,  and 
near  the  sordid  clothes-line  and  little  stove,  which 
constitute  the  housekeeping  outfit  of  this  family  of 
strolling  acrobats,  the  father  of  the  family,  in  the 
dress  of  a  clown,  but  with  an  expression  truly 
pathetic  on  his  weary  face,  is  seated,  holding  a  baby, 
to  whom  he  administers  a  nursing-bottle.  Near 
him  are  two  trained  white  poodles,  and  his  two 
pretty  little  children,  in  fluttering  circus  robes, 
warming  their  hands  at  the  glow  of  the  stove.  At 
the  right  his  wife,  a  good-looking  young  woman 
with  handsome  limbs,  in  pink  tights,  protruding 
in  a  startling  way  from  beneath  the  striped  shawl 
in  which  she  is  wrapped,  sits  involved  in  a  flirtation 


386     zbc  Hrt  of  tbe  HJres^en  (Bailer^ 

with  a  showily  dressed  dandy.  The  articles  of  the 
wardrobe  strung  upon  the  clothes-line  interfere 
with  her  husband's  vision  of  this  episode.  The 
grim  humour  and  pathetic  disorder  of  this  scene 
are  wholly  natural,  and  the  hazards  and  trials  of  a 
Bohemian  existence  are  epitomized  with  a  good 
deal  of  power. 

The  picture  by  Claus  Meyer,  called  Three  Cats 
and  Three  Kittens,  is  excellent.  Again  one  feels 
the  Dutch  influence,  and  this  time  it  is  De  Hooch 
and  Vermeer  of  Delft  who  live  again !  The  women 
in  this  picture  are  in  old  German  costumes,  and 
the  composition  is  charming  and  effective.  Claus 
Meyer  painted  chiefly  in  Munich,  though  Hanover 
was  his  native  place. 

Diez's  study  of  wounded  soldiers  and  a  march- 
ing army  is  dramatic  and  interesting.  Diez  is 
quite  Dutch  in  his  feeling,  and  one  sees  influences 
of  all  the  great  leaders  of  the  Netherlands  in  his 
touch.  Diirer  and  Rembrandt,  Teniers  and  Brou- 
wer,  all  are  reincarnated  and  modernized  in  his 
work.  He  was  by  birth  a  native  of  Bayreuth,  and 
became  professor  in  the  Academy  of  Munich. 

The  beautiful  transparent  colour  should  be  no- 
ticed in  the  picture  by  Josef  Weiser,  the  interesting 
Last  Refuge,  a  scene  during  the  defence  of  a  mon- 
astery against  invaders. 

Fritz   August    Kaulbach    is   chiefly   a   "  costume 


/IDo&ern  German  /iDasters  387 

painter,"  who  renders  charming  effects  in  semi- 
historic  style.  His  May  Day  shows  a  family  party 
of  the  seventeenth  century,  and  is  very  attractive 
in  its  way.  The  general  atmosphere  is  that  of  a 
Watteau,  —  graceful,  dainty,  and  decorative.  He 
is  somewhat  eclectic,  instead  of  being  strictly  orig- 
inal, but  the  results  are  very  satisfactory.  He  culls, 
but  he  culls  with  remarkable  success,  from  the  best 
works  of  all  times ;  and  his  pictures  are  often  posi- 
tively educational. 

The  painters  of  the  Munich  school  developed 
various  processes;  they  revived  fresco,  and  they 
tried  the  use  of  wax  medium.  Another  process, 
employed  a  good  deal  by  Piloty  and  Kaulbach,  was 
the  use  of  a  medium  called  "  wasser  glas,"  some- 
times alluded  to  as  liquid  flint.  This  is  a  partic- 
ularly permanent  medium  in  wall  decoration,  and 
is  no  more  difficult  to  use  than  more  perishable 
fresco. 

There  is  a  soft,  attractive  tremulousness  in  the 
atmosphere  of  Ludwig  Dill's  Scene  from  the  Vene- 
tian Lagoons.  This  silvery,  peaceful  stretch  of 
water,  with  its  picturesque  boats  and  its  one  little 
steamer  off  in  the  distance,  suggests  the  lazy  local 
spirit  invaded  by  modern  briskness.  The  low  hori- 
zon and  clear  high  sky  give  great  feeling  of  space. 

Really  touching  and  full  of  pathetic  incident  is 
C.    L.    Bokelmann's     Emigrants    Leaving    Their 


388     ube  Hrt  of  tbe  H)rest)en  (Bailer^ 

Home.  We  are  so  used  to  think  of  the  arrival 
of  emigrants  that  we  sometimes  forget  what  heart- 
rending scenes  must  have  often  accompanied  their 
departure.  The  bent  grandmother,  kissing  the  Ht- 
tle  boys,  —  no  doubt  for  the  last  time,  —  the  little 
child  in  its  nightgown  waiting  on  the  door-step 
to  say  farewell  to  its  relatives,  the  serious  faces  of 
the  women,  some  of  whom  are  weeping  at  the 
prospect  of  parting,  are  all  full  of  tender  under- 
standing of  the  situation.  The  more  one  looks  at 
this  picture,  the  more  one  seems  to  be  standing 
in  the  very  little  square  itself,  so  great  is  the  veri- 
similitude. The  tones  of  the  picture  and  its  han- 
dling are  extremely  beautiful. 

Here  hangs  the  only  illustration  of  the  great 
creative  art  of  Adolf  Menzel ;  it  represents  a 
Sermon  in  the  Old  Klosterkirche  in  Berlin.  Known 
chiefly  through  his  magnificent  series  of  pictures 
in  the  life  of  Frederick  the  Great,  Menzel  is  pri- 
marily a  great  original  genius  in  black  and  white. 
He  is  a  pioneer  of  the  best  naturalism,  a  naturalism 
which  recognizes  the  mind  as  being  just  as  natural 
as  the  body. 

Menzel  was  an  infant  prodigy.  He  was  born 
in  Breslau  in  1815,  but  his  father,  realizing  his 
talent,  as  so  few  fathers  of  great  artists  seem  to 
have  done,  moved  to  Berlin  especially  that  the 
young  Adolf  might  avail  himself  of  the  educational 


/IDoC)ern  ©erman  /iDasters  389 

advantages  of  that  centre.  The  boy,  however,  did 
not  care  for  the  Academy.  He  refused  the  precise 
form  of  aesthetic  culture  which  had  been  planned 
for  him,  but  he  adopted  another;  he  studied 
types  in  the  city  streets;  used  his  keen  penetration 
for  the  purpose  of  noting  details  and  facts  which 
had  escaped  the  observation  of  ordinary  people, 
and  thus  became  almost  a  self-made  draughtsman. 
He  loved  this  adventurous  original  form  of  educa- 
tion, and  continued  in  this  manner  until  the  death 
of  his  father.  The  boy  at  this  time  was  sixteen, 
but  the  responsibility  of  the  family  devolved  upon 
him.  Therefore  he  settled  down,  and,  with  the 
balance  and  practical  ability  of  the  truest  genius, 
set  to  work  at  once  as  a  lithographer,  taking  any 
orders  that  came  in  his  way.  His  first  effort  at 
illustration  was  in  an  edition  of  Goethe.  His  career 
was  assured  from  this  time  on ;  his  name  stood,  as 
it  has  ever  since,  for  all  that  is  best  in  five  branches 
of  technique :  pencil,  chalk,  pen,  lithography,  and 
water-colour.  His  work  is  individual  and  of 
rugged  strength  in  its  lines.  His  greatest  contri- 
bution to  art,  perhaps,  is  in  drawing,  —  he  is  abso- 
lute master  of  line  and  value.  Sometimes  he  pre- 
ferred, when  sketching  from  nature,  to  use  the 
simple  lead-pencil,  as  it  was  so  easily  carried  about, 
and  independent  of  conditions  and  the  time  wasted 
in  drying.     But  his  pencil  could  express  as  much 


39°     XTbe  Hrt  ot  tbe  H)rest)en  (Bailer^ 

as  most  men's  paint.  He  had  a  never  wearying 
facility  for  reproducing  all  his  impressions  of  every 
side  of  life,  and  under  all  sorts  of  conditions.  His 
versatility  is  remarkable.  His  work  is  replete  with 
humour;  he  indulges  in  satire  quite  freely,  but  it 
is  a  satire  proceeding  from  an  appreciation  of 
quaint  and  amusing  situation,  and  is  not  inspired 
by  spite  or  spleen.  He  is  a  Carlyle  of  the  crayon 
when  he  comes  to  portray  Frederick  the  Great  at 
Potsdam  and  Sans  Souci.  In  his  national  inherit- 
ance he  shows  traces  of  the  same  qualities  which 
inspired  Ditrer  and  Holbein;  when  I  say  this,  I  do 
not  mean  that  he  copies  them  in  any  sense,  but  that 
the  majestic  Teutonic  spirit  which  expressed  itself 
in  their  art  according  to  the  needs  of  their  period 
is  again  manifest  in  the  productions  of  Menzel, 
according  to  modern  requirements  and  surround- 
ings. 

Menzel's  illustrations  for  the  works  of  Fred- 
erick the  Great  amount  to  two  hundred,  and  are 
individual  and  brilliant.  They  are  the  work  of  a 
genius  in  historic  interpretation :  they  have  nothing 
of  the  element  of  the  romanticists  by  whom  he  was 
surrounded,  nor  have  they  the  least  tendency  to 
the  commonplace  or  the  grandiose,  such  as  usually 
characterized  court  pictures  in  the  early  nineteenth 
century.  These  illustrations  are  true  to  the  life 
of  the  period  of  Frederick  and  Voltaire,  and  noth- 


/IDoDern  German  /iDasters  391 

ing  in  old  or  new  art  is  more  complete  as  an 
achievement  than  this  series. 

One  sees  nothing  of  the  feminine  influence  in 
the  works  of  Menzel.  His  life  seems  to  have  been 
quite  apart  from  women,  and  he  has  spent  much 
time  as  a  positive  recluse.  It  is  related  of  him  that 
at  the  age  of  seventy-eight  he  could  still  sketch 
with  firm,  accurate  strokes  while  travelling  in  a 
train.  Among  his  large  and  important  pictures  in 
oil  are  also  episodes  from  the  hfe  of  Frederick. 
He  was  a  hermit,  only  going  into  society  in  order 
to  transcribe  it  and  to  paint  it. 

A  personal  friend  of  Menzel  describes  his  "  den  " 
in  which  much  of  his  study  and  work  was  accom- 
plished. He  says  that  the  room  was  plentifully 
stowed  with  books,  —  volumes  on  Van  Eyck  and 
Diirer,  —  the  works  of  Dante  and  Cervantes  also 
being  among  the  favourites  of  the  artist.  In  con- 
versation with  his  visitor,  Menzel  enunciated  an 
aesthetic  principle  which  is  most  true  in  all  depart- 
ments of  aesthetics.  He  said  that  it  was  no  use 
supposing  that  Greek  costumes  would  make  a  Greek 
picture;  that  it  was  possible  for  modern  figures 
in  modern  dress  to  embod}''  all  the  essential  prin- 
ciples of  the  art  of  the  Greeks,  while  the  mere  fact 
of  painting  people  with  a  classic  effect  in  a  scene 
taken  from  Greece  might  fail  absolutely  of  its  pur- 
pose.   Menzel's  walls  were  decorated  with  portraits 


392     Xlbe  Brt  of  tbe  H)res&en  0alleri? 

by  Holbein  and  Velasquez,  and  a  statue  of  Michel- 
angelo's Moses  occupied  a  space.  Among  con- 
temporary painters,  the  only  one  represented  was 
Meissonnier. 

Menzel  was  the  senior  and  chief  master  in  Berlin 
art  of  the  nineteenth  century.  The  work  of  his 
mature  life  took  on  a  more  modern  note  than  that 
which  he  had  previously  struck,  but  as  we  have  only 
this  early  painting  in  Dresden,  by  which  to  observe 
his  manner,  we  leave  with  regret  the  study  of  his 
later  development.  The  picture  in  Dresden  is  dated 
1848,  and  was  bought  for  this  gallery  in  1892. 
Adolf  Menzel  died  in  February,   1905. 

Menzel's  illustrated  Proverbs  are  famous.  For 
instance,  when  Frederick  the  Great  says,  "  What  we 
have,  we  neglect  and  never  appreciate  sufficiently, 
while  we  strive  in  vain  to  possess  what  we  cannot 
achieve  "  —  Menzel  portrays  a  caged  bird,  with 
some  cherries  which  have  been  put  in  for  its  delec- 
tation. The  little  prisoner  cares  nothing  for  the 
fruit,  ^nd  is  only  striving  to  get  out  of  his  cage; 
while  a  free  bird  on  the  outside  is  making  frantic 
efforts  to  reach  the  cherries !  Liberty  or  fruit,  — 
how  often  the  combination  arises  in  human  affairs! 

Menzel  was  not  much  of  a  traveller.  He  went 
to  only  one  Italian  city,  Verona ;  and  explained 
this  by  saying  that  there  was  so  much  in  his  imme- 
diate neighbourhood  to  be  studied  that  he  could  not 


/lDot)ern  (Berman  /iDasters  393 

possibly  go  outside!  He  was  intimate  with  Meis- 
sonnier,  and,  although  he  could  speak  no  French, 
and  Meissonnier  no  German,  they  used  to  go  prowl- 
ing together  in  the  most  congenial  way;  when 
they  saw  something  which  called  for  mutual  appre- 
ciation they  would  turn  and  squeeze  hands! 

Menzel  has  been  called  the  "  prophet  of  the 
ugly."  In  1835,  when  this  was  said,  it  was  so 
unusual  for  an  artist  to  draw  anything  strictly 
according  to  nature  that  one  can  understand  the 
reason  for  the  nickname.  He  has  also  been  char- 
acterized as  the  German  Fortuny. 

There  is  hardly  a  more  charming  child  in  art 
than  the  little  Arcadian  who  listens  so  attentively 
to  the  shepherd  playing  upon  a  reed  pipe  in  Ernest 
Zimmermann's  Music  Lesson.  The  inquiring  ex- 
pression on  his  earnest  face  is  almost  unrivalled. 
A  satyr  sits,  by,  beating  time  approvingly,  and  a 
rabbit  pricks  up  its  long  ears  at  the  left.  All  is 
glad  and  sylvan,  and  yet  the  child  is  positively 
strenuous. 

Gabriel  Max's  Girl  on  Her  Knees,  the  picture 
called  "  Our  Father,"  is  beautifully  executed,  but 
perhaps  a  thought  too  white  in  its  impression. 
Max  selects  subjects  inclined  to  morbidness,  or  at 
least  to  very  grave  seriousness.  He  is  original  in 
his  themes,  possessing  the  one  essential  power  in 
modern  aesthetic  life,  whether  in  painting,  music. 


394     TLbc  Hrt  of  tbe  Btesben  (Balleri? 

the  drama  or  literature :  the  abiHty  to  start  a  new 
emotion  in  the  human  breast.  Essentially  emo- 
tional, rather  than  intellectual,  his  pictures  have 
enormous  and  well-deserved  popular  charm.  There 
is  feeling  and  thought  in  all  his  works;  that  truly 
German  virility  which  never  paints  a  picture  simply 
to  fill  a  space,  nor  even  to  portray  a  scene,  without 
some  undercurrent  of  intention.  Emotions  are  ele- 
mental. Gabriel  Max  will  always  create  an  interest 
and  rouse  an  emotion  in  human  hearts.  He  com- 
menced life  in  Prague,  where,  after  the  death  of 
his  father,  he  began  to  work  in  that  visionary  psy- 
chic vein  which  has  always  predominated  in  his 
pictures.  Thoughtful,  but  not  pedantic,  bringing 
tears  to  the  eyes  rather  than  instructing,  his  paint- 
ings are  unique  and  characteristic,  imbued  with  a 
strong  personality.  The  curious  head  of  Christ  on 
the  napkin  of  St.  Veronica,  that  mysterious  face  in 
which  the  eyes  seem  now  closed,  now  open,  is  typ- 
ical of  the  spirit  of  his  genius  and  one  of  his  most 
noted  works. 

Michael  Munkacsy  was  born  in  Hungary  in 
1846,  His  father  was  an  Hungarian  patriot;  the 
family  life  was  very  strenuous  in  troubled  times, 
and  he  was  left  an  orphan  at  the  age  of  four.  He 
was  adopted  by  an  aunt.  His  earliest  impressions 
must  have  been  those  of  battle,  murder,  and  sud- 
den death,  for  in  a  few  years  his  aunt  was  killed 


/IDo&ern  (Berman  /iDasters  395 

by  members  of  the  opposition.  This  time  the  Httle 
Michael  was  passed  on  to  an  uncle,  a  rather  stern 
and  very  practical  carpenter,  and  the  boy  was 
made  to  learn  the  trade,  and  to  make  himself  use- 
ful. Through  his  teens  he  was  a  journeyman  car- 
penter, but  his  thirst  for  knowledge  and  culture 
led  him  to  seek  out  college  students,  with  whom 
he  found  much  in  common,  and  he  was  popular 
with  the  clever  young  men  of  his  day.  Indeed 
his  ambition  for  education  caused  him  to  overtax 
his  strength,  and,  from  working  all  day  and  study- 
ing most  of  the  night,  he  became  a  physical  wreck, 
and  had  to  succumb  to  a  long  and  serious  illness. 
After  his  recovery  he  decided  that  an  artist's  life 
was  the  only  one  for  him,  and,  as  he  could  not  get 
much  sympathy  from  those  with  whom  he  lived, 
he  started  off  to  travel  in  order  to  pursue  such 
advantages  as  some  of  the  cities  had  to  offer.  He 
worked  his  way  to  Pesth  as  a  mechanic,  and,  after 
waiting  a  time  to  recuperate  his  fortunes,  pushed 
on  to  Vienna.  He  tried  to  provide  for  himself  in 
this  city  sufficiently  to  enable  him  to  study  at  the 
Academy,  but  his  efforts  were  fruitless,  and,  as  he 
failed  to  pay  for  his  tuition  promptly,  he  was  put 
out  of  the  institution.  Practically  self-taught,  he 
travelled  on  to  IMunich,  and  there  set  up  a  modest 
studio  and  began  to  paint.  Arriving  with  only 
twenty  florins,   he   soon  sold  pictures  enough  to 


396     XTbe  Brt  of  tbe  IDres^en  Gallery 

enable  him  to  support  himself :  the  battle  painter, 
Franz  Adam,  was  particularly  kind  to  him,  evi- 
dently recognizing  a  kindred  genius  in  the  young 
man  who  had  already  a  tragic  past.  His  pictures 
took  prizes  and  he  was  highly  spoken  of.  He  went 
on  to  Diisseldorf,  where  he  worked  without  further 
instruction.  He  has  been  described  as  having  a 
strange  appearance  and  being  full  of  naive  confi- 
dence. He  spoke  a  broken  German  in  a  low  voice 
with  a  melancholy  tone. 

Munkacsy's  Bohemian  life  at  this  time  was  of 
an  innocent  and  festive  type;  he  rejoiced  in  Car- 
nival frolics  and  was  always  among  the  merry- 
makers. He  liked  his  little  joke.  He  had  once 
asked  fifteen  distinguished  generals  and  war  heroes 
to  dinner  in  his  studio.  The  table  was  set  for 
thirty.  He  instructed  his  guests  to  sit  down,  leav- 
ing every  other  chair  empty.  The  glasses  were 
filled,  and  the  dinner  was  apparently  about  to  pro- 
ceed, when,  at  a  signal,  the  doors  were  thrown  open, 
and  fifteen  of  the  prettiest  models  in  Paris,  dressed 
in  the  most  fantastic  costumes  of  various  ages, 
rushed  in,  laughing,  and  bounced  into  the  vacant 
seats!  The  old  generals,  surprised,  but  not  dis- 
pleased, enjoyed  their  meal  with  much  relish! 

A  rounded  nature,  Michael  Munkacsy  was  by 
turns  "  sad,  mad,  glad,  yet  perfectly  sober."  In 
1870  he  exhibited  in  the  Paris  Salon  for  the  first 


/IDo&ern  German  /IDasters  397 

time  the  picture  of  a  Condemned  Prisoner.  This 
made  a  great  sensation,  being  a  reaHstic  and  pa- 
thetic study  of  a  condemned  man  sitting  in  his  cell, 
with  his  mourning  family  and  friends  about  him, 
while  children  eye  him  with  a  morbid  curiosity. 
But,  in  spite  of  his  tremendous  success,  the  artist 
remained  level-headed,  and,  unspoiled  by  adulation, 
continued  steadily  at  his  work.  He  was  decorated, 
but  returned  quietly  with  his  ribbon  to  his  studio 
in  Diisseldorf,  where  he  advanced  continually  in  his 
art,  painting  splendid  genre  subjects,  more  dashing 
than  Ribera,  and  sometimes^  as  brutal  as  Caravag- 
gio.  His  works  at  this  time  are  full  of  realistic 
types,  often  ugly:  one  might  say  that  they  had 
power  through  lack  of  beauty.  He  is  quite  free 
from  any  academic  qualities. 

Munkacsy  lived  in  Paris  later,  and  went  after- 
ward to  Budapest,  where  he  resided  for  some 
time.  He  died  near  Bonn  in  1900.  As  great  a 
picture  as  he  ever  painted  is  his  Crucifixion  in 
Dresden.  The  relief  of  the  figures  against  the  sky 
is  simply  wonderful.  The  group  is  a  large  one, 
the  whole  canvas  being  about  twelve  feet  by  six. 
The  centre  of  interest  is  at  the  right,  where  the 
figure  of  Christ  on  the  cross  between  the  thieves 
rises  in  awful  grandeur,  stately  and  noble.  Ideals 
are  so  varying  that  no  Crucifixion  in  art  has  ever 
yet  satisfied  a  large  number  of  people ;   but  perhaps 


398     Ubc  Hrt  of  tbe  S)res&en  (5aUerp 

this  modern  picture  has  made  its  appeal  to  as  many 
souls  as  any  other  single  work  dealing  with  the 
subject.  The  women  at  the  foot  of  the  cross  are 
full  of  grief,  but  the  figures  are  less  restrained  and 
dignified  than  that  of  St.  John,  who  stands  by, 
overwhelmed  with  grief,  his  very  helplessness  mak- 
ing its  pathos  more  strongly  felt  than  action.  In 
the  central  foreground  is  a  spirited  figure :  a  youth, 
who  seems  to  hesitate  between  fear  and  curiosity; 
he  would  go,  and  yet  he  would  stay;  a  powerful 
sense  of  the  uniqueness  of  this  death  is  borne  in 
upon  him,  but  it  terrifies  the  Jewish  boy,  who  is 
one  of  those  that  "  know  not  what  they  do."  The 
bewilderment  has  spread  to  others  in  the  crowd. 
Two  old  Pharisees  are  attempting  to  argue  them- 
selves free  of  responsibility.  The  noble  rider  on 
horseback  at  the  left  looks  back  in  awe  as  well  as 
wonder.  Before  him  is  a  running  figure,  an  old 
man  who  wishes  only  to  escape,  horrified  and  con- 
science-stricken. The  picture  should  be  long  stud- 
ied, for  there  is  much  thought  in  its  composi- 
tion. 

Lenbach's  Portrait  of  Paul  Heyse  is  to  be  seen 
in  the  twenty-eighth  room.  Paul  Heyse  was  a  poet 
and  novelist,  born  in  Berlin  in  1830.  He  travelled 
extensively  in  Italy,  but  after  1854  his  residence 
was  made  in  Munich.  He  was  one  of  the  friends 
of  Bocklin,   Lenbach,   and  their  delightful  set,   of 


/iDobern  (Berman  /iDasters  399 

whom  I  shall  speak  when  dealing  with  them  in  the 
next  chapter. 

It  is  perhaps  a  little  eccentric  that  Heinrich 
Miiller,  who  was  born  in  Pultawa  and  lived  and 
died  in  Dresden,  should  select  Lake  Michigan  as 
the  subject  of  his  picture  in  this  room ! 

The  tragedy  of  the  hills  is  vividly  portrayed  by 
August  Dieffenbacher  in  the  picture  of  the  father 
of  a  family  being  brought  home,  having  lost  his 
life  in  the  winter  blasts  on  the  mountains. 

One  comes  suddenly  upon  a  familiar  sight  as  one 
enters  the  next  apartment;  it  is  often  almost  a 
shock  to  meet  face  to  face  unexpectedly  an  old 
friend,  and  that  is  the  feeling  that  one  has  when 
confronted  with  one  of  the  most  popular  pictures 
in  the  world,  —  familiar  in  every  home,  known  by 
every  child,  —  the  Boy  Christ  in  the  Temple,  by 
Hofmann.  Perhaps  it  is  finer  in  monochrome  than 
in  the  original,  for  Hofmann  is  a  little  crude  as 
a  colourist;  in  a  photograph  one  sees  the  sweet 
face  to  better  advantage  than  in  the  real  picture. 
Hofmann's  Christ  and  the  Adulteress  is  here  also, 
—  it  is  a  trifle  theatrical.  Critics  do  not  recognize 
Hofmann  very  seriously ;  but  it  seems  to  me  un- 
pardonable to  ignore  entirely,  as  many  do,  the  at- 
tainments of  a  painter  who  possesses  as  wide  a 
popularity  as  any  man  in  his  line.  His  Bible  illus- 
trations are  in  most  general  use;    his  Christ  in  the 


400     ^be  Brt  ot  tbe  H)rest>en  (Ballerp 

Temple  is  deservedly  famous;  it  is  not  fair  to 
say  that  there  is  no  art  where  there  is  so  wide  an 
appeal.  It  may  not  be  the  art  most  appreciated 
by  the  cultured^  but  it  is  autocratic  to  claim  that 
there  are  no  good  points  in  pictures  which  have 
such  a  universal  reputation. 

The  Burning  Monastery  is  an  example  of  the 
work  of  Carl  F.  Lessing,  who  was  born  in  Breslau 
in  1808,  and  occupied  important  positions  in  Ber- 
lin and  Diisseldorf,  becoming  later  a  professor  and 
director  of  the  Carlsruhe  School  of  Art.  Lessing 
was  one  of  the  rather  visionary  school,  but  these 
men  showed  a  keen  appreciation  of  nature,  which 
marked  a  new  era.  There  is  more  realism  in  his 
work  than  in  that  of  some  of  the  earlier  men,  but 
he  is  best  known  as  a  master  of  the  "  ideal  land- 
scape "  class.  He  died  in  1880  at  Carlsruhe.  He 
was  an  unconscious  prophet  of  the  great  theory 
which  was  to  dominate  later  and  greater  painters. 
This  is  well  expressed  by  G.  Clausen :  *'  A  land- 
scape should  not  be  so  much  an  inventory  as  a 
translation  or  transcript  of  a  mood  of  nature." 
Lessing  chose  moods  of  nature  for  his  study,  and 
rendered  them  with  a  good  deal  of  fine  feeling, 
although  in  a  very  different  spirit  from  that  in 
which  a  modern  artist  would  approach  them.  He 
loved  landscape  for  its  own  sake,  independent  of 
cultivation  or  civilization.     "  Had  I  been  born  in 


/iDoDern  German  /roasters  401 

the  seventeenth  century,"  he  said,  "  I  would  have 
wandered  through  Germany  after  the  Thirty  Years' 
War,  plundered,  ruined,  and  wild  as  she  then  was." 
This  sentiment  should  be  compared  with  the  doc- 
trine of  Lairesse,  which  I  have  quoted  elsewhere 
as  a  further  proof  of  the  fact  that  the  spirit  of 
the  times  determines  the  standard  of  art. 

The  Lamentation  over  Christ,  No.  2262,  was 
commenced  by  Julius  Rotermund,  who  died  very 
early;  the  picture  was  consequently  finished  by 
Eduard  Bendemann,  and  is  signed  by  both  names. 
It  was  completed  in  1859.  Bendemann  was  the 
professor  under  whom  Rotermund  was  studying 
in  Dresden,  and  was  therefore  the  proper  person 
to  complete  his  pupil's  work.  The  pictures  of 
Eduard  Bendemann  are  inclined  to  be  convention- 
ally romantic,  and  do  not  exhibit  much  depth  of 
thought;  neither  are  they  especially  excellent  as 
artistic  productions. 

Among  those  who  turned  earnestly  to  a  study 
of  nature  was  Ludwig  Gurlitt,  who  was  born  at 
Altona  in  18 12.  The  picture  of  the  Monastery 
of  St.  Busaco  in  Portugal  is  by  him.  It  was  painted 
in  1875.  There  is  some  of  the  clear  daylight  which 
was  brought  to  such  perfection  by  the  Englishman 
Constable,  to  be  seen  in  this  study.  He  was  a  genu- 
ine realist,  and  was  a  leader  among  the  men  who 


402     ube  Hrt  ot  tbe  Dresden  (3alleri? 

had   thrown  off  the   traditional   yoke  of   artificial 
landscape. 

Among  the  painters  of  modern  village  genre  is 
Franz  Defregger,  whose  Mountain  Smithy  hangs 
here.  Defregger  is  well  known  to  all  through  his 
Tyrolese  pictures,  which,  although  rather  monot- 
onous, are  individually  interesting.  He  always  tells 
a  story,  and  this  one  is  more  dramatic  than  most 
of  his  selections.  In  the  Tyrolese  Revolt  in  1809 
the  war  was  conducted  by  such  men  as  innkeepers, 
herdsmen,  shepherds,  and  even  priests ;  one  Capucin 
monk  went  upon  the  field  and  fought  with  only  a 
huge  ebony  crucifix  for  his  weapon.  The  peasants 
armed  themselves  in  secret,  making  rude  weapons 
at  all  the  forges  and  smithies  in  the  mountain  fast- 
nesses ;  they  laid  in  wait  with  all  forms  of  missiles 
ready  to  their  hands,  until  the  terrible  word  of 
command  was  given,  —  "  In  the  Name  of  the  Holy 
Trinity,  cut  all  loose !  "  upon  which  it  is  said  that 
the  very  rocks,  bushes,  and  crags  seemed  to  be 
endowed  with  life,  and  all  nature  appeared  to  aid 
the  revolutionists,  for  they  were  hidden  behind 
every  tree  and  hill,  and  they  poured  down  stones 
and  billets  of  woods  upon  the  enemy,  who  was  not 
ready  for  such  an  assault,  firing  as  well  with  the 
true  aim  of  huntsmen,  never  wasting  their  shots, 
and  doing  deadly  execution.  They  were  unsuccess- 
ful, however,  and  their  chiefs  were  afterward  put 


/iDobern  (Berman  jflDasters  403 

to  death.  But  the  spirit  and  force  exhibited  by  the 
Tyrolese  on  this  occasion  has  appealed  to  their 
artists,  and  is  perpetuated  nobly.  Defregger  was 
himself  born  in  the  Tyrol  in  1835,  and  has  usually 
preferred  subjects  dealing  with  the  native  life  of 
that  community.  In  this  line  he  is  far  happier  than 
when  he  attempts  a  Madonna  or  an  important  his- 
torical picture.  Until  he  was  fifteen,  Franz  took 
care  of  his  father's  flocks;  bareheaded  and  bare- 
footed, he  mixed  with  the  country  folk,  the  herds- 
men and  milkmaids,  laying  a  splendid  foundation 
for  health,  and  growing  in  knowledge  of  the  inti- 
macies of  rustic  life.  He  did  not  realize  his  artistic 
vocation  until  after  he  was  twenty-three.  He  then 
studied  with  Piloty,  in  Munich,  but  turned  for  his 
expression  to  the  vivid  memories  of  his  youth. 
The  tendency  of  memory  —  that  of  idealizing  the 
early  life  and  seeing  the  most  picturesque  side  of 
the  past  —  is  observable  in  his  simple  peasant  pic- 
tures, where  the  people  all  seem  to  be  in  holiday 
spirit,  and  usually  in  festal  array.  The  sterner 
side  of  the  peasant's  history  is  seen  in  this  Moun- 
tain Smithy,  while  the  lighter  side  is  well  exem- 
plified by  his  picture,  Hunters  Taking  Leave  of  the 
Sennerin.  In  the  Smithy,  the  honest  and  earnest 
faces  of  the  men,  and  the  wondering  faith  of  the 
young  girl  are  charmingly  contrasted.  The  prim- 
itive cannon  strapped  to  itsi  carriage  awaits  them, 


404     Ube  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresden  Gallery 

and  betokens  the  efforts  of  these  plain  people  to 
be  ready  to  protect  and  to  enforce  their  rights. 
Defregger  is  now  an  Academy  professor  at  Munich. 
Alexander  Calame  was  a  Swiss  artist,  born  in 
Vevay  in  1810;  he  worked  much  in  Geneva,  and 
his  picture  here  is  of  fir-trees  near  a  mountain 
stream,  which,  though  not  in  a  very  poetic  way, 
displays  certain  Swiss  characteristics.  Very  correct 
workmanship  is  his  only  redeeming  feature ;  he  had 
little  imagination  or  inspiration.     When  his  works 

—  very  uniform  in  expression  —  used  to  appear  in 
considerable  numbers  in  the  Paris  Salon,  the 
naughty  Frenchmen  would  shrug  their  shoulders, 
and  are  reported  to  have  remarked,  "  Un  Calame, 

—  deux  Calames,  —  trois  Calames,  —  que  de  Ca- 
lamites !  "  Calame  began  life  by  colouring  views 
of  Swiss  scenery,  and  there  is  no  question  but  the 
influence  of  this  early  practice  can  be  traced  in  his 
paintings.     He  died  in  Mentone  in  1864. 

Faint  praise  has  been  allowed  to  damn  Hans 
Gude,  by  dubbing  him  the  Calame  of  the  North! 
His  picture  of  Fishers  Landing  on  the  Seashore 
is  a  correct,  neat,  estimable  work.  The  colouring  is 
unobjectionable;  it  passes  muster,  but  fails  to  arouse 
enthusiasm. 

Modern  men  are  too  apt  to  laugh  at  a  really  good 
work,  because  it  is  executed  in  a  method  which 
does  not  conform  to  the  ideals  by  which  they  them- 


/Il>o&ern  German  /iDastcrs  405 

selves  have  been  taught  expression.  At  the  same 
time  they  will  stand  in  reverence  before  a  modern 
work  which  happens  to  be  a  little  better  than  they 
can  produce  themselves,  although  it  is  a  mere  baga- 
telle in  comparison  with  the  older  picture.  Time 
helps  to  balance  these  things ;  but  it  is  almost  im- 
possible to  coerce  the  vogue  of  a  day. 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

MODERN    GERMAN    MASTERS  —  CONTINUED 

As  has  been  noted,  modern  German  painters  of 
the  early  nineteenth  century  were  academic;  art 
did  not  advance  greatly  for  a  time.  To-day,  how- 
ever, Germany  has  a  great  many  individual  artists 
not  members  of  a  special  school  or  cult,  though 
undoubtedly  influenced,  as  all  impressionist  artists 
must  be,  by  the  great  Frenchmen.  Each  modern 
German  of  importance  is  a  law  unto  himself,  and 
that  makes  these  artists,  together,  a  most  fascinat- 
ing body  of  painters  to  study. 

Returning  to  the  first  hall,  which  divides  the  two 
wings  of  the  upper  gallery,  one  is  in  the  presence 
of  the  great  canvas  by  Max  Thedy,  called  Adoratio 
Crucis.  This  is  intended  to  represent  a  real  scene, 
and  yet  in  it  there  is  also  a  possibility  of  allegorical 
interpretation.  The  scene  is  in  a  church,  where  a 
life-sized  crucifix  lies  on  the  ground,  and  penitents 
and  worshippers  are  crowding  down  to  kiss  and 
adore  it.    While  it  is  peculiar,  it  is  powerful.    Max 

406 


/IDoDern  (3ermau  /IDasters  4°? 

Thedy,  a  native  of  Munich,  is  professor  at  Wei- 
mar. 

The  Portrait  of  Napoleon  I.,  in  his  coronation 
robes,  painted  by  F.  B.  Gerard,  was  presented  to 
the  Gallery  by  Napoleon  himself.  The  figure  is 
a  stately  piece  of  regal  upholstery,  quite  in  the  gen- 
eral spirit  of  the  man  and  his  times. 

The  modern  French  school  is  often  alluded  to 
comprehensively  as  the  "  Impressionist "  school. 
This  term  is  all  very  well  as  far  as  it  goes.  The 
aim  of  modern  painters  is  to  reproduce,  not  a  pho- 
tographic portrait  of  natural  objects,  as  was  the 
ideal  of  the  Pre-Raphaelites,  but  to  secure  in  their 
pictures  some  impression  which  the  object  has  made 
upon  them,  —  a  personal  appeal,  as  it  were,  an  in- 
terpretation of  the  object  by  the  artist's  own  indi- 
viduality. The  painter  tries  to  express  himself 
upon  a  given  subject,  just  as  an  author  does ;  he 
does  not  pretend  to  give  a  literal  transcript  of  the 
object  which  he  has  selected,  any  more  than  a 
writer  on  Shakespeare  contents  himself  by  making 
quotations  from  the  plays.  His  own  interpretation 
must  appear  in  both  cases.  Thus  it  will  be  seen 
that  in  a  measure  any  artist  is  an  impressionist  if 
he  does  more  than  photograph  a  scene.  But  the 
modern  Frenchmen  themselves  invented  a  term 
which  distinguishes  their  school  better  —  "  plein- 
airistes,"    or    "  open-air    painters."      In    selecting 


4o8     'Jibe  Hrt  of  tbe  Bres^en  6aUeri? 

daylight  and  natural  effects  instead  of  arrange- 
ments of  artificial  light  and  deliberate  pose  in  com- 
position, they  were  differentiated  from  all  artists 
who  had  gone  before  them,  excepting  a  chosen  few 
who  had  been  in  advance  of  their  times. 

With  this  rendering  of  natural  daylight  and  un- 
affected composition,  there  grew  up  a  new  use  of 
pigments.  Instead  of  the  paint  being  mixed  on  the 
palette  and  applied  in  a  single  broad  value  of  one 
shade,  it  was  placed  in  small  patches,  not  mingled 
together,  but  set  so  cleverly  and  with  so  perfect 
a  comprehension  of  the  effect  to  be  produced  that 
the  canvas  has  often,  on  close  scrutiny,  the  appear- 
ance of  a  mosaic,  while  at  a  proper  distance  the  eye 
unconsciously  mixes  the  tints  for  itself,  and  the 
result  is  much  more  vital  than  it  would  be  if  the 
shades  were  all  blended,  as  they  used  to  be  by  most 
of  the  old  masters,  with  a  view  to  close  inspection 
chiefly.  Hals,  Velasquez,  and  Moroni  used  to  paint 
directly  and  with  spontaneity;  the  pigment  lies  at 
once  as  it  is  intended  to  remain,  and  there  are  no 
glazings  or  retouchings.  Most  of  the  later  paint- 
ers used  this  method  also,  and  in  the  art  of  to-day 
it  is  the  only  method  employed  to  any  extent. 

The  decorative  chalky  Fisherman's  Family,  by 
Puvis  de  Chavannes,  is  one  of  the  few  modern 
French  pictures  here.  It  is.  more  than  a  study  of 
a  fisherman's  family,  however,  being  symbolical  of 


PUVIS    DE    CHAVANNES.  FISHERMAN  S    FAMILY 


/IDoDern  (Berman  /iDasters  409 

the  three  ages  of  man.  Puvis  de  Chavannes  was 
a  true  poet,  but  no  dreamer.  His  was  a  unique 
gift;  he  was  a  mystic,  and  yet  was  not  subtle  nor 
involved.  He  was  a  great  idealist,  with  steady 
nerves  and  a  certain  sane  ability  to  portray  wide 
simplicity.  Although  he  was  so  deeply  in  sympa- 
thy with  the  impressionist  movement,  he  deter- 
mined on  his  own  method,  and  adhered  to  it, 
never  being  dominated  by  any  other  style.  Be- 
fore entering  any  French  studio,  he  had  twice 
been  to  Italy.  He  had  always  a  sympathy  with 
seafaring  folk,  and  uses  them  in  an  elemental  and 
ideal  way.  His  feeling  for  harmony  made  him  use 
few  colours,  and  those  simple  and  broad.  His 
people  have  strong,  well-knit  bodies  capable  of 
work.  The  sentiment  which  one  feels  is  neither 
religious  nor  pagan;  it  is  ideally  human  and  a 
newly  created  type  in  art.  Puvis  de  Chavannes 
said  himself :  "  Painting  is  not  merely  an  imitation 
of  reality,  but  it  is  a  parallel  with  Nature."  His 
use  of  pigments  is  as  original  as  his  design.  At 
a  first  glance  it  would  often  be  difficult  to  say 
whether  he  worked  in  oils,  water-colour,  or  pastel. 
As  a  matter  of  fact,  although  people  often  allude 
to  his  "  fresco,"  he  never  employed  the  medium  of 
fresco  at  all ;  his  large  decorative  wall  paintings 
are  in  oil,  on  canvas,  applied  afterward  to  the  wall. 
One  motto  of  his  was,  "  One  must  try  to  paint  sub- 


4IO     ubc  Hrt  ot  tbe  Dresden  (Balleri? 

jects  taken  from  real  life,  but  they  must  have  a 
general  application."  His  beings  are  of  no  period, 
and  of  no  nation.  In  this  he  is  supremely  the  mas- 
ter in  the  selection  of  essential  elements  of  human- 
ity with  the  divine  side  recognized  as  fully  as  the 
earthly.  He  used  to  say :  "  Nature  ?  They  say 
that  I  ignore  her?  They  fail  to  understand  that 
I  do  not  copy,  but  I  draw  my  inspiration  from  her." 
In  his  actual  life,  Puvis  de  Chavannes  was  emi- 
nently practical.  He  worked  steadily  all  day,  a 
healthy,  robust  man,  with  strong  nerves  and  a  fine 
mental  development.  He  seldom  took  luncheon, 
not  liking  to  interrupt  his  concentration,  but  at  noon 
he  would  eat  a  little  dry  bread  and  a  few  brandy 
cherries.  When  his  ideas  stopped  flowing  readily, 
he  knew  that  he  was  physically  tired,  and  had  the 
sense  to  stretch  himself  out  and  go  to  sleep,  no 
matter  at  what  hour,  always  waking  refreshed  in 
a  short  time.  Few  brain-workers  realize  the  value 
and  refreshing  stimulant  of  a  short  nap,  or  how 
possible  it  would  be  for  almost  any  one.  Simply 
to  follow  the  dictates  of  nature,  and  to  sleep  when 
weary,  makes  a  worker  capable  of  accomplishing 
more  in  one  hour  after  waking  than  he  could  in 
four  hours  of  conscientious  plodding,  after  nature 
has  made  its  cry  for  refreshment.  Puvis  de  Cha- 
vannes always  sang  at  his  work,  and  had  that  other 
attribute  of  healthy  nerves,  the  ability  to  throw  off 


/IDoOern  (Berman  /iDasters  411 

care  and  responsibility  when  the  day's  work  was 
done,  entering  fully  into  cheerful  conviviality  and 
getting  a  complete  mental  rest. 

The  lack  of  willingness  to  follow  any  master, 
even  in  his  early  youth,  when  Puvis  de  Chavannes 
went  from  studio  to  studio  in  dissatisfaction,  may 
in  some  degree  account  for  the  fact  that  his  actual 
drawing  is  often  at  fault.  Some  enthusiastic  ad- 
mirers consider  this  intentional ;  they  believe  that 
he  meant  to  throw  his  figures  out  of  proportion  at 
times  in  order  to  simplify  the  impression;  but  the 
faulty  drawing  does  not  simplify,  —  it  complicates 
the  impression,  for  one  longs  to  adjust  these  con- 
spicuous peculiarities  which  are  so  inconsistent; 
and  if  the  lines  were  all  firmly  in  the  right  places, 
they  would  be  twice  as  simple  and  direct  in  their 
appeal.  It  seems  to  me  that  one  must  admit  that 
his  figures  and  his  details  are  often  out  of  draw- 
ing; but  the  greatness  of  the  man  is  the  more 
remarkable  in  that  he  rises  absolutely  to  excellence 
in  spite  of  what  would  usually  be  a  serious  draw- 
back. The  positive  in  his  work  is  so  much  stronger 
than  this  negative  that  it  always  dominates.  For 
nine  years  his  pictures  were  refused  by  the  Salon. 
The  academic  artists  could  not  forgive  these  tech- 
nical inaccuracies ;  it  was  not  a  quick  road  which 
he  ran  to  fame.  Puvis  de  Chavannes  was  among 
those  to  found  the  New  Salon,  and  in  189 1  he  be- 


412     Ubc  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresben  0allerp 

canie  its  president.  From  this  time  his  reputation 
grew  gradually,  but  it  was  not  until  he  was  seventy- 
one  years  old  that  he  reached  the  summit  of  his 
fame. 

His  friendship  with  the  Princess  Catacuzene 
commenced  when  he  was  thirty,  and  has  been  lik- 
ened to  Michelangelo's  love  for  Vittoria  Colonna. 
She  was  his  greatest  inspiration,  and  he  always 
turned  to  her  for  approval  of  his  work.  Two  years 
before  his  death,  they  were  married.  She  only  lived 
about  a  year.  After  this,  the  health  of  the  master 
failed,  and  he  lost  all  wish  to  live  without  his  be- 
loved companion.  In  the  midst  of  his  sorrow  he 
completed  his  last  work,  the  Old  Age  of  St.  Gene- 
vieve, in  the  Pantheon,  and  then  succumbed  to 
mortal  illness.  It  is  told  by  a  personal  friend  that 
when  his  last  hour  was  at  hand,  he  motioned  every 
one  to  retire  from  his  room,  and,  by  his  own  wish, 
he  died  quite  alone. 

The  sweet,  wholesome  sanity  of  the  man  has  wit- 
nessed to  itself  in  his  choice  of  subjects.  Nearly 
all  his  pictures  are  peaceful,  radiant,  full  of  opti- 
mism, and  the  joy  of  living.  Horrors  and  morbid 
subjects  did  not  attract  him.  He  did  not  care  for 
storm  and  stress ;  even  war  was  symbolized  by  the 
dignity  of  suffering  rather  than  disordered  despair. 
Cool,  calm,  elevated,  we  feel  that  the  name  of  Puvis 
de  Chavannes  stands  for  all  the  noble  qualities  of 


/IDo&ern  German  /iDasters  413 

the  art  to  which  he  made  such  rich  and  original 
contribution. 

In  sharp  contrast,  the  sentimental  young  attitudi- 
nizer  whom  Gerhard  von  Kugelgen  has  chosen  to 
portray  as  the  Prodigal  Son  is  to  be  seen  here. 
This  artist  met  with  a  tragic  fate,  being  murdered 
in  1820  near  Dresden.  He  was  professor  of  the 
Academy. 

The  correct  and  in  every  way  excellent  work  of 
Wilhelm  Riefstahl  is  to  be  seen  in  the  Funeral 
Procession  Past  the  Pantheon  in  Rome.  His  schol- 
arly rendering  of  detail  is  sound,  and  his  pictures 
are  much  hked  in  public  collections,  being  at  the 
same  time  instructive  and  decorative. 

Karl  Hoff,  a  professor  at  Carlsruhe,  where  he 
died  in  1890,  has  painted  a  truly  dramatic  incident 
in  his  large  canvas  entitled  The  Son's  Last  Greet- 
ing. A  mother  and  daughter  are  learning  of  the 
death  and  last  messages  of  a  young  soldier  from 
one  of  his  comrades  in  arms,  who  stands  in  rev- 
erence before  their  grief.  The  contrasting  tones 
—  the  soft  grays  and  the  bright  garb  of  youth  — 
could  not  be  more  excellently  managed.  The  pic- 
ture is  an  episode,  almost  a  narrative.  If  one  may 
argue,  as  one  has  to  among  the  moderns,  that  a 
story  is  not  a  necessarv^  feature  of  a  picture,  still 
one  may  also  reserve  the  right  to  enjoy  and  appre- 
ciate it  when  the  painter  is  so  clever  that  he  can 


414     Ube  Hrt  ot  tbe  H)resDen  (Bailer^ 

combine  the  two,  and  give  us  something  to  think 
of  as  well  as  something  to  look  at.  There  is  more 
than  one  story  in  this  picture.  When  one  sees  how 
the  handsome  youth  and  the  lovely  maiden  are  gaz- 
ing into  one  another's  eyes  across  the  space  which 
separates  them,  both  full  of  that  sympathy  which 
is  the  first  step  toward  a  deeper  love,  one  feels  that 
there  should  be  a  sequel;  a  painting  on  another 
key,  from  which  the  sad  note  shall  be  missing. 

Julius  Roting's  Columbus  before  the  Ecclesias- 
tical Council  of  Salamanca  is  a  strong  picture,  and 
the  figures,  if  a  little  theatrical,  are  well  drawn  and 
lifelike.  The  historic  detail  is  well  considered,  and 
the  picture  repays  close  observation. 

The  portrait  of  His  Majesty,  King  Albert  of 
Saxony,  hangs  here,  painted  by  Leon  Polile,  an 
Academy  professor  of  Dresden.  Pohle  was  born  in 
Leipsic  in  1841.  He  has  painted  several  of  the 
royal  family.  In  Room  35  may  be  seen  the  likeness 
of  Prince  George,  Duke  of  Saxony ;  this  picture  was 
presented  to  the  gallery  by  the  artist  in  1899.  The 
portrait  of  King  Frederick  August  the  Just  of  Sax- 
ony, one  of  the  noble  princes  of  this  house,  greets 
us  in  the  thirty-first  room.  It  is  by  Karl  Vogel, 
of  Vogelstein,  and  was  painted  in  1823. 

Dramatic  and  full  of  tragic  situation  is  Carl 
Bahr's  scene  of  the  Finnish  Magicians  foretelling 
the  death  of  Ivan  the  Terrible.     This  picture  was 


/lDo&ern  6erman  Masters  415 

painted  in  1850.  Carl  Bahr  was  an  artist  of  the 
first  half  of  the  nineteenth  century,  as  his  work 
denotes. 

The  smooth  mawkishness  of  Diethe's  Supper  at 
Emmaus  shows  how  low  the  standard  of  religious 
art  had  fallen  at  this  time.  It  is  a  relief  to  turn 
to  a  different  theme. 

A  realistic  picture  like  the  scene  in  the  port  of 
Hamburg,  called  Going  to  Work,  is  in  early  morn- 
ing light.  It  is  a  good  genre  painting,  and  should 
be  examined  for  its  little  incidents.  It  is  by  one 
of  the  Carlsruhe  painters,  Kallmorgen,  who  is  pri- 
marily regarded  as  a  landscape  painter,  but  with 
whom  the  human  element  is  almost  never  absent. 

The  Ferry  at  Telemarken,  Norway,  by  Siegwald 
Dahl,  is  a  remarkably  fine  specimen  of  the  earlier 
realistic  school.  As  is  appropriate  to  the  subject, 
the  whole  impression  of  atmosphere  and  colouring 
is  cold :  the  drawing  is  exquisite,  and  the  aerial 
perspective  startlingly  clear;  great  feeling  for  dis- 
tance is  observable. 

A  blithesome  thing  is  the  Young  Triton  by 
Carlos  Grethe.  Dashing  through  the  deep  blue 
waves,  the  little  red-headed  merman  pursues  a  rec- 
reant flying-fish,  which  has  all  it  can  do  to  escape 
his  swift  stroke.  The  whole  has  a  breezy  feeling 
through  it,  which  almost  brings  the  salt-sea  smell 


4i6      Ubc  Hrt  of  tbe  WxcB^cn  (Bailers 

to  one's  nostrils.  It  is  a  capital  performance  in 
its  line. 

The  spirited  scene  from  the  Napoleonic  era,  rep- 
resenting Prussian  Dragoons  at  Early  Dawn,  is  by 
Robert  Haug;  it  was  painted  in  1891.  The  pic- 
ture is  called  after  the  name  of  an  old  German  song, 
"  Morgenrot !     Morgenrot !  " 

Hans  Hermann,  born  in  Berlin  in  1858,  has  given 
us  a  pleasant  but  rather  photographic  view  of  an 
old  Dutch  town;  Hermann  is  hardly  as  original  or 
as  full  of  life  as  some  of  his  contemporaries. 

Paul  Baum,  a  Dresden  painter  of  the  last  half 
of  the  nineteenth  century  and  early  twentieth,  is 
considered  by  some  as  a  satellite  of  Claude  Monet. 
He  is  full  of  talent :  his  two  charming  landscapes 
here.  Melancholy,  No.  2293  D'  ^"  early  spring  land- 
scape, with  a  view  of  the  Flemish  flats,  and  his 
autumn  study,  with  first  snow,  No.  2293  E,  are 
interesting  pieces  of  impressionist  work. 

Notice  the  soft  greenish  picture,  a  Corner  of  a 
Peasant's  Room,  by  Carl  Bios ;  the  quality  of  lumi- 
nosity developed  in  that  dot  of  sunlight  is  excellent. 

A  curious  idea  is  that  of  Eduard  von  Gebhardt, 
a  painter  of  Diisseldorf ;  he  has  adopted  the  prin- 
ciple of  portraying  Biblical  scenes  in  the  German 
costumes  of  the  fifteenth  century.  A  panel  by  him 
presents  a  unique  composition ;  so  far  as  I  know, 
it  is  the  only  treatment  in  art  of  its  subject.     It 


/lDo&ern  (3ermau  /iDasters  417 

represents  the  Holy  Women  washing  the  anointed 
body  of  Christ,  which  has  been  brought  into  the 
house  of  his  faithful  friends.  The  body  of  the 
Lord  is  laid  on  the  plain  floor,  partly  covered  with 
a  white  cloth,  the  head  supported  with  pillows. 
The  three  Maries  are  ministering,  the  Virgin  weep- 
ing at  his  head,  and  the  Magdalen  anointing  the 
body  from  the  alabaster  box  which  she  holds.  Two 
women,  talking  together,  approach  with  basins  of 
water,  while  St.  John  stands  reverently  by,  con- 
templating with  anguish  the  cold  form  of  his  Mas- 
ter. Grouped  at  the  other  side  of  the  large  bed- 
room, lofty,  entirely  German,  with  its  timber  ceil- 
ing and  diamond-paned  window,  are  a  number  of 
honest  country-folk  dressed  as  Luther  and  Diirer 
might  have  dressed,  sitting  on  chairs  at  the  foot 
of  a  canopied  bed.  Altogether  the  picture  is  a 
strange  one,  and  a  notable  example  of  the  reaction 
against  the  conventional  "  drapery  studies  "  which 
religious  pictures  had  become. 

The  Roman  peasants  which  Gustav  Kuntz  paints 
so  frequently  are  seen  to  advantage  in  his  Roman 
Pilgrim,  who  is  kissing  the  feet  of  a  crucifix  by 
the  wayside,  and  his  other  Roman  Pilgrim,  who 
is  seated,  piously  regarding  a  festooned  saint  in  a 
niche  in  the  wall.  The  same  model  served  for  both 
studies. 

Franz  Skarbina's  Belgian  Inn  on  the  Shore  of 


4i8     ube  Brt  ot  tbe  DvesDen  Gallery 

La  Panne  is  a  tA'pical  painting  of  this  Berlin  artist. 
He  was  original  in  his  mode  of  procedure  in  his 
artistic  career.  He  was  born  in  1849.  His  first 
works  were  scenes  from  the  life  of  Frederick  the 
Great,  based  upon  Menzel.  Suddenly  he  branched 
out  in  a  new  direction,  and  exhibited  a  picture  of 
Wiertz-like  horror,  in  1878,  the  Awakening  of  One 
Supposed  to  be  Dead.  By  the  time  he  sent  pic- 
tures to  the  Paris  Salon  in  1885,  he  had  quite  over- 
turned his  old  traditions,  and  passed  through  a 
stage  of  naturalism  into  impressionism.  This  sin- 
gle example  of  his  work  shows  great  control  over 
atmospheric  effects.  It  was  painted  in  his  full 
maturity  in  1891. 

The  Seamstress,  by  Max  Liebermann,  shows  that 
artist's  pioneer  spirit,  he  standing  in  the  same  rela- 
tion to  German  art  as  that  occupied  by  Millet  in 
the  Barbizon  school.  When  he  commenced  his 
work,  he  was  derided  as  an  apostle  of  the  ugly; 
but,  as  time  went  on,  he  became  better  understood. 
Liebermann,  while  recovering  from  an  illness,  was 
obliged  to  spend  many  days  lying  in  the  open  air, 
with  nothing  to  watch  but  the  play  of  the  sunshine 
and  the  working  peasants.  It  acted  as  a  revela- 
tion in  his  art.  The  Old  Sewing  Woman  sitting 
at  her  window,  with  another  chair  in  front  of  her, 
that  she  may  rest  her  feet  on  the  rails,  is  a  thor- 
oughly natural  study.     There  is  great  insight  in 


/iDo^ern  German  /iDasters  419 

his  work ;  it  has  the  Teutonic  characteristic  of 
thoughtfulness.  Though  sometimes  heavy  and 
without  extreme  readiness  in  mellow  colour  effects, 
he  works  more  like  Millet,  putting  the  vitality  of 
the  fields  and  the  power  of  mental  strength  before 
us.  Liebermann  has  told  us  in  his  own  words  what 
is  his  principle  in  art :  "  I  do  not  seek,"  he  writes, 
"  for  what  is  called  the  pictorial ;  but  I  would 
grasp  Nature  in  her  simplicity  and  grandeur,  — 
the  simplest  thing  and  the  hardest."  This  sober 
monumental  dignity  is  what  Max  Liebermann 
stands  for,  and  there  is  a  changelessness,  a  lack  of 
evanescent  fashion  about  his  pictures,  which  makes 
them  belong  to  the  genuine  art  of  his  country. 

A  pupil  of  the  Dresden  Academy,  though  born 
at  Liege  in  1833,  is  Jan  Libert  Oury.  He  is  rep- 
resented here  by  a  charming  study  of  a  nun :  the 
official  title  of  the  picture  is  A  Nun  Reading,  but 
a  glance  at  the  serious  eyes  lifted  to  ours,  the  wist- 
ful unsatisfied  longing  in  the  fixed  gaze,  shows  us 
that  this  nun  is  reading  quite  outside  the  open  book 
which  lies  before  her ;  her  interests  are  rather  to 
inquire  into  the  secrets  of  the  human  heart,  and 
one  longs  to  help  her  in  her  quest. 

The  striking  composition  of  Hans  Thoma  greets 
us  here.  A  trifle  suggesting  the  great  genius  of 
Bocklin,  Thoma  stands  as  a  connecting  link  be- 
tween the  old  and  new  art.     Like  Botticelli  in  his 


420     Ube  art  of  tbe  Dresden  6allen? 

symmetry,  like  Diirer  in  his  stern  medisevalism, 
he  is  yet  joyous  and  pagan,  replete  with  nature- 
poetry,  and  pastoral  in  a  Virgilian  way,  Greek  yet 
modern.  Perhaps  this  is  really  being  a  classic. 
Hans  Thoma  was  born  in  the  Black  Forest  in  1839, 
where  his  childhood  was  spent  close  to  nature. 
Until  he  was  twenty,  he  simply  vegetated,  and  lived 
almost  like  a  hermit,  with  the  exception  of  some 
slight  art  instruction  in  the  winters.  After  that, 
he  started  on  a  career  of  travel,  visiting  Italy,  Paris, 
Diisseldorf,  and  Munich,  where  Bocklin's  influ- 
ence was  felt,  ending  in  Frankfort,  where  he  set 
up  his  studio.  His  picture  here,  the  Guardian  of 
the  Valley,  is  a  symbolic  figure  in  armour,  with  a 
nimbus,  who  might  be  intended  as  an  archangel; 
he  watches  over  the  slumbering  valley  by  night. 
This  thought  may  often  have  come  to  him  in  his 
calm  forest  home  among  the  hills.  The  sentiment 
of  the  Spring  Idyl,  too,  is  that  inspired  by  a  com- 
prehension of  nature.  The  portrait  of  the  artist 
himself,  with  an  autumn  landscape  for  a  back- 
ground, may  be  seen  in  the  next  room.  Here  we 
have  the  formal  note  of  decorative  portraiture.  It 
is  not  quite  free  from  affectation. 

There  is  a  powerful  picture  here  by  the  French- 
man Germain  David-Nillet.  This  study  of  con- 
trasting lights  —  this  ashy  gray  woman  standing 
before  this  fiery  red  man  —  is  called  The  Confes- 


/iDoDern  German  /iDasters  421 

sion.  Is  it  the  man,  in  a  glow  of  shame,  who  is 
confessing  to  the  woman  that  which  causes  all  the 
colour  to  go  from  her  and  leave  her  clay-cold  and 
lifeless  in  a  misplaced  love,  or  is  it  the  woman,  in 
the  chill  of  a  bitter  remorse,  who  is  making  the 
confession,  —  a  confession  which  makes  the  man 
burn  with  anger?  The  fact  that  it  is  not  certain 
which  was  the  artist's  intention  renders  the  picture 
doubly  dramatic. 

The  modern  realistic  painter  of  Norway  par  ex- 
cellence —  the  man  who  stands  for  such  principles 
as  those  of  Bastien  Le  Page  and  Dagnan  Bouveret 
—  is  Christian  Krohg.  He  is  a  great  narrator,  he 
is  intensely  dramatic,  with  the  stern  sordid  truthful- 
ness of  the  pessimist.  There  is  not  special  oppor- 
tunity to  judge  of  these  qualities  in  his  Norwegian 
Pilot-boat,  in  Dresden.  One  cannot  do  better  than 
quote  Hamerton's  well-digested  opinion  of  extreme 
realism  which  overlooks  anything  ideal  as  abso- 
lutely out  of  nature.  "  We  may  exaggerate  because 
we  feel  strongly,"  remarks  Hamerton,  "  but  we 
far  oftener  exaggerate  because  we  do  not  feel  deli- 
cately." There  is  a  species  of  blindness  in  such 
realism ;  and  a  man  who  can  see  only  the  gross  and 
hideous  in  nature  and  life  (even  low  life)  is  but 
a  half-developed  character.  The  example  of  Chris- 
tian Krohg  in  Dresden  is  a  simple  study  of  a  boat- 
man and  a  boy.     The  pilot,  with  extended  hand,  is 


422     ubc  Brt  ot  tbe  2)res&en  (Balleri? 

pointing  out  an  object  of  interest  to  the  lad  beside 
him.  The  composition  is  original,  only  a  small 
portion  of  the  boat  being  represented,  and  beyond, 
the  angry  sea. 

Old  Age,  a  picture  of  two  old  goose-keepers,  by 
Count  von  Kalkreuth,  is  an  excellent  bit  of  natural- 
istic work  of  this  painter.  Gray  and  lacking  in 
sunshine,  his  pictures  exhibit  all  that  those  who 
dislike  this  school  consider  sordid.  He  is  quite 
relentless,  and  perhaps  we  are  justified  in  thinking 
him  rather  cheerless  and  uninviting. 

A  sort  of  Paul  Potter  of  the  nineteenth  century 
is  Hans  Olde,  who,  though  educated  in  Paris,  has 
settled  quietly  down  to  cattle  and  genre  painting  in 
the  picturesque  Holstein  country.  The  picture  of 
a  Holstein  bull,  which  hangs  here,  was  painted  by 
him  in  1896. 

Lenbach's  portrait  of  Marco  Minghetti  hangs 
here.  Marco  Minghetti  was  a  famous  Italian 
statesman.  He  was  born  in  Bologna  in  18 18,  and 
died  in  Rome  in  1886.  Under  Cavour  he  was  Min- 
ister of  the  Interior.  He  afterward  became  Pre- 
mier in  1863.  He  has  written  to  some  extent,  and 
has  made  valuable  contributions  to  the  literature 
of  economics. 

Franz  von  Lenbach  was  one  of  the  greatest 
German  painters  who  has  ever  lived.  Startlingly 
original  in  a  time  when  artists  were  idealizing  their 


/IDo&ern  6erman  /iDasters  423 

portraits  into  their  own  conception  of  "  great  men," 
Lenbach  began  sternly  to  paint  facts,  —  the  man 
just  as  he  was,  neither  flattered  nor  reinforced  by 
any  extraneous  charms.  He  apphed  to  photographs 
for  his  accurate  cold  facts,  not  using  them,  of 
course,  as  an  aid,  except  to  consult  their  inflexible 
truth,  and  then  he  went  to  work  on  a  plan  of  his 
own.  In  most  of  his  portraits  the  only  really  care- 
ful finish  is  in  the  eyes ;  the  head  receives  attention, 
too,  but  the  rest  is  often  sketchy  and  indefinite. 

These  portraits  by  Lenbach  are  world-famous. 
In  all  lands  his  rendering  of  Bismarck's  face  is 
familiar :  the  popular  impression  of  the  appearance 
of  most  of  the  celebrated  Germans  of  the  nine- 
teenth century  is  based  somewhat  upon  Lenbach's 
likenesses  of  them.  His  portraits  are  the  only  ones 
in  Germany  thought  worthy  of  reproduction  by 
engraving  and  etching,  and  they  have  been  repeat- 
edly printed  in  various  publications. 

Lenbach  was  born  of  humble  parents  in  a  little 
village  in  Bavaria,  in  1836,  but  worked  his  way 
to  fame  without  any  singular  hindrances.  One  day, 
while  driving  with  the  Princess  Bismarck,  they 
passed  a  poor  man  w^orking  on  the  roof  of  a  cot- 
tage. "  Just  look.  Princess,"  said  Lenbach,  "  I, 
too,  have  worked  like  him  in  my  day !  "  His  ap- 
pearance was  that  of  an  alert,  intellectual  man,  a 
little  Mephistophelian  in  type.     While  he  v.as  still 


424     Ube  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresden  Oallerp 

a  young  painter,  he  was  asked  his  price.  He  re- 
pHed,  "  It  depends.  I  may  ask  twenty  thousand 
marks,  or  I  may  be  wilHng  to  pay  five  thousand  if 
the  subject  is  exceptionally  interesting."  He  lived 
up  to  his  ideals,  and,  as  wealth  came  to  him,  he 
used  it  in  the  most  intelligent  way,  in  surrounding 
himself  with  all  sorts  of  fine  pictures,  antiques,  and 
such  things  as  delight  the  soul  of  an  artist.  The 
Villa  Lenbach  was  one  of  the  chief  sights  of  Mu- 
nich. He  was  showered  with  royal  gifts.  The 
Emperor,  the  Queen  of  Roumania,  and  many  other 
great  ones  testified  to  their  appreciation,  for, 
though  no  courtier,  and  never  having  sought  for 
favours,  he  was  the  chosen  painter  of  two  genera- 
tions of  German  royalty.  When  Princess  Bismarck 
once  complained  that  she  never  saw  anything  of 
her  husband  or  her  sons,  Lenbach  observ^ed,  "  Well, 
what  made  you  marry  into  such  a  hard-working 
set  of  diplomats  ?  "  Lenbach  and  Bismarck  were 
close  friends.  It  was  a  familiar  sight  to  see  them 
embrace  each  other  when  they  met  on  the  street. 
When  Lenbach  was  painting  the  portrait  of  Leo 
XIII.,  the  Pope's  question  showed  the  breadth  of 
the  pontifical  sympathies :  he  inquired,  *'  Are  you 
a  good  Christian?"  instead  of  asking  him  if  he 
were  a  good  Catholic.  Lenbach  had  a  keen  sense 
of  humour,  and  expressed  himself  of  the  opinion 
that  wit  was  "  the  chief  charm  of  human  greatness." 


/IDo&ern  (Berman  /IDasters  425 

In  art  his  taste  was  much  gratified  by  the  EngHsh 
school.  He  enjoyed  the  portraiture  of  Reynolds 
and  the  leading  British  painters  of  that  period,  and 
also  was  a  lover  of  Turner  and  Constable. 

Lenbach  knew  how  to  use  every  minute  of  his 
time.  A  friend  was  once  spending  the  evening 
with  him.  He  relates  that,  at  one  o'clock  in  the 
morning,  their  conversation  was  interrupted,  and 
the  friend  was  called  away  to  answer  a  message 
which  he  had  received.  When  he  returned,  he 
found  Lenbach  deep  in  a  book;  even  ten  minutes 
at  that  hour  was  too  much  time  to  be  wasted! 

Lenbach's  death  was  quite  recent.  Last  sum- 
mer, 1905,  a  magnificent  testimonial  to  his  position 
in  German  art  was  the  great  Lenbach  exhibition 
in  Munich,  where  nearly  all  his  leading  works  were 
gathered  under  one  roof.  It  was  a  splendid  oppor- 
tunity to  judge  and  understand  the  virility  of  this 
man.  Alas!  His  love  for  the  English  school  has 
probably  led  him  into  some  rash  colour  experi- 
ments, for  many  of  his  pictures  are  cracking  or 
peeling  already.  But,  as  they  used  to  say  of  Reyn- 
old's portraits,  —  even  a  damaged  one  is  better  than 
anything  else  one  can  get! 

Fritz  von  Uhde  now  demands  our  attention.  His 
large  triptych,  Bethlehem,  greets  us  in  the  thirty- 
sixth  room,  and  is  so  much  a  departure  from  the 
usual  in  religious  compositions  that  we  must  try 


426     ube  Brt  of  tbe  Bres^en  Gallery 

and   understand   his   position   in   his   intense   real- 
ism. 

Fritz  von  Uhde's  father  was  an  ecclesiastical 
functionary,  and  he  himself  joined  the  Saxon  Horse 
Guards  in  1867,  being  then  about  nineteen.  He 
stayed  with  the  army  through  the  French  cam- 
paign, and  in  1877  became  a  captain.  Then  he 
left  the  warrior's  life  to  become  a  painter  in  Munich, 
after  which  a  few  years  were  spent  with  Munkacsy 
in  Paris.  A  hard  worker  and  an  original  thinker, 
his  effort  was  to  portray  the  life  about  him,  adapted 
to  religious  scenes.  In  this  he  does  just  what  we 
criticize  in  Rembrandt,  Veronese,  and  others,  who 
were  excused  on  the  ground  that  they  did  not  know 
the  countries  and  costumes  which  they  attempted. 
But  in  the  case  of  Von  Uhde  and  others  of  his 
standard,  this  is  quite  intentional ;  of  course  any 
nineteenth-century  painter  had  every  facility  for 
painting  historic  scenes  as  they  had  appeared,  if 
he  wished  to  do  so.  But  Von  Uhde  preferred  to 
treat  Bethlehem  as  a  common  stable  view,  such  as 
might  be  seen  in  Germany  or  in  any  other  country ; 
he  selects  modern  clothes  and  modern  types  delib- 
erately. His  theory  in  so  doing  must  be  partly 
symbolic,  to  impress  the  poor  and  lowly  of  to-day 
with  the  fact  that  the  Incarnation  was  for  them 
as  for  the  Holy  Land,  —  a  typical  re-Incarnation, 
as  it  were,   independent  of  time  and  place,  with 


/IDoDern  German  /IDasters  427 

its  message  for  the  German  day-labourer  just  as 
much  as  for  the  shepherds  who  watched  their  flocks 
by  night.  This  principle  is  a  worthy  one,  and  we 
rejoice  in  the  spirit  of  universal  Christianity  that 
it  helps  to  interpret.  But  when  one  looks  at  the 
angels  sitting  on  the  rafters  singing,  the  old  ideal- 
ism which  is  implanted  in  the  human  breast  of  all 
ages  revolts  a  little  at  the  types  which  Von  Uhde 
has  chosen.  Human  children,  —  well  and  good ; 
but  why  half-starved  gutter-snipes  of  selected  hid- 
eousness,  with  careworn,  prematurely  old  faces, 
hanging  their  large  bare  feet  over,  with  the  toes 
turned  in?  Is  there  not  a  compromise  possible 
between  Albani's  sugary  cherubs  and  these  raga- 
muffins singing  so  lustily,  with  wrings  on  their 
shoulders  and  bunions  on  their  feet?  There  is 
something  a  little  incongruous  about  wings  and 
bunions.  If  an  angel  has  wings,  why  should  it 
develop  corns?  And  must  all  modern  shepherds 
be  cripples  and  consumptives?  It  seems  to  me  that 
modern  realism  has  reached  its  limit  in  this  com- 
position of  Von  Uhde's. 

In  many  of  his  other  works  the  balance  betw^een 
modern  peasantry  and  revealed  religion  is  better 
sustained;  but  in  the  Dresden  example  it  seems 
to  have  been  carried  a  trifle  far.  The  central  pic- 
ture is  much  more  pleasing  than  the  wings. 

A  striking  composition  by  Kuehl,  full  of  piquant 


428     uhc  Brt  ot  tbe  2)rest)en  (Ballerp 

spirit  in  spite  of  its  subject,  is  the  picture  of  the 
sewing-girls  in  the  Orphanage  at  Liibeck;  it  ought 
to  be  sordid,  yet  it  is  filled  with  an  unexplainable 
charm,  largely  dependent  upon  the  clear  light  which 
streams  in  from  the  window  in  the  back,  —  an 
original  mode  of  lighting.  The  bare  walls  and  long 
stretch  of  board  floor  ought  to  be  monotonous,  yet 
they  have  not  that  quality.  After  all,  light,  confined 
in  a  space  and  illuminating  the  spots  best  adapted 
to  receive  it,  is  nearly  always  a  sufficient  adornment 
for  a  study  when  it  is  well  expressed.  The  touches 
of  red  save  the  picture  from  coldness,  and  give 
animation  to  the  tone.  Kuehl  is  much  influenced 
by  Fortuny  in  his  work.  He  was  a  native  of  Lii- 
beck, his  birth  having  occurred  in  1850.  A  pro- 
fessor in  Dresden  and  Munich,  he  stands  high  in 
the  modern  German  school.  His  peculiar  lightness 
of  touch  and  a  certain  scintillating  quality  are  at- 
tributable to  the  Spanish  feeling  derived  from  For- 
tuny; consciously  or  unconsciously,  he  has  adopted 
that  painter  as  a  model. 

George  Hitchcock  is  here  among  the  few  Ameri- 
cans. He  was  born  in  Providence,  Rhode  Island, 
and  is  famous  for  his  beautiful  paintings  of  the 
splendid  floral  displays  of  a  Dutch  Springtide.  This 
picture  is  a  study  amidst  the  tulips  of  Haarlem. 

Another  American,  Alexander  Harrison,  is  the 
author  of  the  Evening  by  the  Waterside.     Harri- 


/IDobern  German  /IDasters  429 

son  is  a  Philadelphian,  who  has  taken  up  residence 
in  Paris,  painting  there  for  many  years.  He  works 
in  the  same  hnes  as  Besnard  and  Cazin,  sometimes 
recalHng  Manet  himself. 

Gari  Melchers,  a  native  of  Detroit,  but  working 
in  Paris  and  North  Holland,  painted  the  Dutch 
Shipwright,  in  Room  35.  These  three  are  the 
only  Americans  who  are  represented  among  the 
modern  painters.  It  makes  one  wish  that  some  of 
our  other  artists  might  appear  on  these  walls,  in 
such  good  international  company. 

And  now  we  come  to  the  most  original  genius 
of  all :  the  matchless  Arnold  Bocklin.  This  strange 
artist  was  born  in  Basle  in  1827,  the  son  of  a  small 
merchant,  —  brought  up  in  an  atmosphere  of  rib- 
bons and  threads.  I  am  a  believer  in  the  virility 
of  early  impressions :  often  unconsciously  the  eye 
is  affected  by  the  first  notes  of  colour  which  have 
impinged  upon  the  retina.  When  Arnold  was  a 
little  child,  his  mother  had  probably  often  carried 
him  into  the  shop;  is  it  not  possible  that  his  unusual 
little  eyes,  roving  about  among  th-e  bolts  of  bright, 
unrelated  colour,  may  have  grasped  an  impression 
of  clear,  untoned  tints,  which  stayed  by  him  always  ? 
At  any  rate,  however  this  might  be.  Bocklin  has 
used  such  a  gamut  of  colour  as  defies  all  systematic 
theories  regarding  harmony  and  tone.  Some  call 
this  art  "bizarre;"    at  any  rate,  it  is  surprising: 


43°     Ube  Hrt  ot  tbe  H)res&en  (Ballerg 

your  attention  is  arrested  whether  you  will  or  no, 
and  that  indicates  power  in  some  form. 

The  good  ribbon  merchant  was,  at  all  events, 
intelligent  enough  to  recognize  his  son's  unique 
gifts,  and  he  allowed  him  to  study  art  at  the  Draw- 
ing Academy  of  Basle.  In  the  University  Library, 
Arnold  discovered  the  collection  of  Holbein's 
works,  and  these  he  studied  and  copied  by  the  hour. 
That  part  of  his  dual  art  personality  which  is  Teu- 
tonic is  due  to  the  influence  of  Holbein  on  his  plas- 
tic young  mind.  His  father  did  not  encourage  his 
adopting  painting  as  a  profession,  for  he  felt  that 
it  was  a  precarious  means  of  support,  but  time  by 
degrees  convinced  the  elder  Bocklin  that  fate  had 
something  to  say  as  well  as  fathers,  and  he  reluc- 
tantly consented  to  a  series  of  studies  in  Diissel- 
dorf  and  Belgium.  Young  Bocklin  also  went  to 
Paris,  where  he  witnessed  the  horrors  of  the  rev- 
olution in  1848.  The  reality  of  these  terrible  sights 
left  their  impression  on  his  sensitive  mind.  While 
he  was  delighted  with  Corot,  and  enjoyed  his  Paris- 
ian stay,  he  did  not  feel  his  desires  satisfied  until 
he  finally  pushed  on  to  Rome.  There  the  revela- 
tion came  to  him.  The  other  side  of  his  person- 
ality —  the  Greek  side  —  sprung  into  consciousness. 
The  Italian,  the  classical,  the  romantic,  —  all  were 
before  him,  and  here  he  fell  in  with  congenial 
spirits,    Dreber,    Feuerbach,    and    the    poet    Paul 


/IDo&ern  (Berman  /roasters  431 

Heyse,  whose  portrait  by  Lenbach  we  have  noticed ; 
it  was  here,  too,  that  he  met  the  lovely  Roman  girl 
who  afterward  became  his  wife,  and  with  whom 
he  lived  in  ideal  harmony.  Now  he  began  to  ex- 
press himself  in  his  own  way,  —  a  way  not  read- 
ily understood  by  the  Philistines.  A  picture  which 
he  sent  home  to  Basle  was  met  with  derision  by 
the  startled  citizens,  who  did  not  know  what  their 
young  countryman  was  driving  at. 

His  painting  is  an  efflorescence  of  Italian  and 
Flemish  styles;  one  sees  Rubens,  Jordaens,  Titian, 
and  Botticelli,  yet  fused  into  an  entirely  new  thing; 
as  new  as  each  human  soul,  in  spite  of  heredity  and 
tradition. 

Soon  after  moving  to  Munich,  he  exhibited  his 
great  study  of  Pan  among  the  Reeds.  It  caused 
quite  a  stir  and  much  questioning  as  to  the  artist. 
When  it  was  discovered  that  Bocklin  was  young 
and  poor,  that  he  was  then  lying  ill  with  typhoid 
fever  in  their  own  city,  the  connoisseurs  and  col- 
lectors began  to  investigate,  and  in  a  short  time 
Bocklin,  recovered  in  health  and  •  comprehended  at 
last,  became  the  fashionable  painter  of  his  day. 
Count  Schack  gave  him  numerousi  commissions, 
and  many  of  his  best  early  works  are  to  be  seen 
in  the  Schack  Gallery  in  Munich.  He  went  also 
into  plastic  art  for  a  little  and  in  1866  was  engaged 
to  decorate  the  courtyard  fagade  of  the  art  museum 


432     XTbc  Hrt  of  tbe  H)re9t)en  Gallery 

in  Basle  with  sculptured  heads.  He  had  recently 
had  certain  difficulties  with  the  magistrates  of  his 
native  city,  and  he  took  this  opportunity  to  be  re- 
venged upon  them.  He  used  them  as  his  subjects, 
executing  six  burlesque  portraits  as  grotesques. 
The  caricature  embodied  in  these  masks  is  truly 
Gothic  in  spirit,  and  they  make  one  recall  how  the 
cloistered  artists  of  old  used  to  vent  their  rage  upon 
unpopular  superiors  by  thus  perpetuating  them  as 
laughing-stocks.  Thus,  in  a  spirit  of  irritation,  his 
fancy  created  exaggerated  likenesses  of  these  good 
counsellors,  secretaries,  and  officials. 

After  this,  Bocklin  painted  for  some  time  in 
Florence,  and  afterward  in  Zurich,  where  he  set- 
tled for  the  sake  of  his  children's  education.  In 
1890  he  was  generally  recognized  as  one  of  the 
leading  painters  of  Germany,  and  the  Pan  Society 
held  a  banquet  in  his  honour;  if  one  believed  in 
reincarnations,  one  would  claim  that  Aristophanes, 
speaking  through  the  medium  of  pigment  instead 
of  through  verse,  had  revisited  the  earth.  Such 
elemental  humour  is  classical,  and  the  spirit  which 
animated  the  Greek  satirist  lived  again  in  the  Swiss 
painter.  His  revel  of  colour  was  a  shock  to  the 
sensibilities  of  the  matter-of-fact  Germans  of  the 
middle  of  the  nineteenth  century.  But  it  prevailed, 
and  showed  that  in  his  case,  although  perhaps  in 
no  other,  it  was  permissible  to  use  these  crashing 


/iDoDern  German  /iDasters  433 

innovations.  Let  any  man  beware  how  he  copy 
Bocklin,  or  try  to  follow  in  his  footsteps!  One 
might  as  well  plan  deliberately  to  follow  Browning's 
method  in  poetry.  The  first  thing  which  would 
make  either  of  these  efforts  entirely  fruitless  would 
be  that  in  neither  case  could  the  copyist  possibly 
discover  what  the  method  was! 

When  Bocklin  was  not  painting,  he  was  amusing 
himself  by  indulging  a  pet  hobby :  he  was  inventing 
and  constructing  a  fiying-machine.  His  was  a 
many-sided  nature,  and  he  was  interested  in  nearly 
every  possible  human  emotion.  If  it  were  possible 
to  see  all  his  pictures  together,  one  might  detect 
something  of  every  psychical  condition  possible  to 
man. 

And  what  shall  we  say  of  his  attitude  toward 
nature?  He  is  inexhaustible  in  representing  her 
moods,  and  he  is  equally  fertile  in  fitting  conscious 
life  to  that  of  the  mineral  and  vegetable  kingdoms. 
Here  in  Dresden  we  have  a  good  example  of  his 
ability  to  conceive  of  the  elemental  beings  insep- 
arable from  the  Greek  pantheism  which  so  appealed 
to  his  glowing  imagination.  Here  we  see  a  spring ; 
the  genius  of  the  fount  sits  in  the  shade  under  a 
flowery  bank,  while  two  satyrs  have  come  to  drink. 
Mark  the  wholly  plausible  and  natural  construction 
of  these  beings.  They  are  not  human.  They  are 
what  the  union  of  a  goat  and  a  man  might  look 


434     XTbe  Hvt  ot  tbe  Bresben  (Bailer^ 

like.  The  goat  nature  is  in  the  face,  and  the  hu- 
man proportions  are  in  the  legs,  in  spite  of  the 
hoofs  in  which  they  terminate.  Bocklin  is  not 
content  to  paint  a  sylvan  swain,  and  then  put  goat's 
legs  on  him,  any  more  than  he  is  content  to  paint 
a  mermaid  as  a  pretty  girl  with  a  fish's  tail.  His 
mermaids  have  fishy  eyes  as  well;  the  whole  struc- 
ture of  his  beings  is  consistent.  The  heads  suggest 
amphibious  possibilities,  and  no  strenuous  expres- 
sion of  the  human  being  with  a  soul  or  a  conscience 
is  allowed  to  creep  in. 

Look  at  the  blank  fat  face  of  the  satyr  who  sits 
on  the  bank  in  the  Dresden  picture.  There  are 
no  aspirations  or  ideals  to  bother  him.  He  was 
a  thirsty  animal,  and  he  sits  back  in  the  content- 
ment of  a  quenched  longing,  sodden  and  satisfied. 

A  very  lovely  element,  however,  is  introduced 
into  this  picture.  The  brutal  and  the  ephemeral 
here  meet  in  a  delightful  way.  The  little  wreath 
of  spring-like  sprites,  slender  babies  of  the  fields, 
born  of  dew  and  sunshine  (not  fat  Renaissance 
cherubs  like  those  we  have  seen  so  often  down- 
stairs), are  dancing  in  a  fantastic  ecstasy  on  the 
flowery  turf  above  the  spring.  Their  little  shapes 
are  ineffably  graceful,  and  for  movement  and  ac- 
tion they  rival  any  group  of  dancing  figures  that 
I  recall  in  art.  Deep  in  the  cool  rocky  shadow, 
under   the  source  of   the   spring,   two  tiny   tribu- 


ARNOLD    BOCKLIN.  —  SPRING  S    DELIGHTS 


/IDo&ern  German  /IDasters  43s 

tary  babies  —  the  offspring  of  the  Source  —  are 
crouched,  with  their  Httle  upturned  jars,  in  youth- 
ful imitation  of  the  nymph  above  them!  The 
whole  idea  is  quaint  and  absolutely  original. 

An  early  painting  by  Bocklin  hangs  in  the  thirty- 
fourth  room;  it  is  also  fantastic  and  interesting. 
The  nymph  Syrinx,  pursued  by  Pan,  is  seen  run- 
ning to  the  river,  and  her  metamorphosis  into  a 
bunch  of  reeds  is  commencing.  The  fingers  of  her 
outstretched  hands  are  turning  into  reeds :  the 
process  is  not  graceful,  it  is  too  suggestive  of  Chi- 
nese finger-nails.  The  landscape  is  in  sympathy 
with  the  subject,  as  Bocklin's  landscapes  always 
are:  even  a  certain  hurtling  rush  in  the  foliage, 
with  a  spiral  vine,  give  the  necessary  action  to  make 
us  sensible  of  the  haste  with  which  the  figures  — 
one  so  fair  and  one  so  dark  —  are  moving.  His 
trees  are  always  made  to  express  the  sentiment  of 
the  other  life  in  his  compositions.  When  the  sen- 
timent is  one  of  gloom,  tall,  dark  cypresses  and 
shrouded  forms  are  used.  When  mirth  and  glad- 
hearted  fancy  are  the  themes,  then  bright  green 
meadows  and  laughing  soulless  fauns  are  presented. 
In  all  the  many  moods  in  which  she  may  clothe 
herself.  Nature  is  shown  to  us,  verisimilitude  being 
given  to  the  Pantheism  of  the  conception  by  the 
introduction  of  consciously  living  creatures  in  per- 
fect harmony  with  their  environment. 


436     Ube  Hrt  ot  tbe  2)rest)en  Gallery 

Bocklin  has  interpreted  the  mysterious  link  be- 
tween beings  and  things;  there  is  that  eternal  ele- 
ment in  his  pictures  which  unites  past  with  present, 
and  makes  ancient  things  appear  modern;  the  hu- 
man encounters  the  soul  of  nature,  and  they  are 
absorbed  into  one  entity.  As  M.  Rod  has  so  well 
expressed  this  spirit,  —  it  is  the  Pantheism  of  the 
dreamer. 

Max  Klinger  is  a  thinker  and  a  poet.  If  some- 
times he  is  a  little  vague,  or  almost  shocking  in  his 
originality,  there  is  always  a  definite  conception  of 
his  own,  fantastic  though  it  may  be,  which  gives 
value  and  uniqueness  to  his  work.  His  Pieta  is 
his  own  idea  of  the  scene.  Visionary,  in  something 
the  same  way  that  Blake  was  visionary,  he  also  has 
a  flavour  of  Goya's  sense  of  grimness.  Max  Klin- 
ger was  born  in  Leipsic  in  1857. 

One  of  the  greatest  modern  pictures  in  all  Ger- 
many is  Ludwig  Herterich's  Knight  of  the  Faith, 
standing  with  clenched  hand  at  the  foot  of  the  cross, 
awaiting  death.  It  is  a  combination  of  realistic 
painting  and  a  visionary  conception.  The  cross, 
rendered  in  liquid  soft  green  tints,  is  meant  to  be 
symbolic ;  the  face  of  the  Saviour  is  turned  toward 
the  knight  in  armour,  as  if  whispering  encourage- 
ment, hardly  more  real  than  a  powerful  memory 
in  the  heart  of  the  soldier.  As  he  stands  nerving 
himself  for  what  may  come,  it  is  as  if  that  voice 


/IDo&ern  (3erman  /IDasters  437 

came  to  him  in  his  own  conscience,  and,  through 
the  mighty  power  of  example,  gave  him  the 
strength  and  peace  of  the  martyr.  The  Knight  of 
the  Faith  represents  Ulrich  von  Hutten,  who  was 
born  at  Castle  Steckelberg,  in  Prussia,  in  1488. 
He  was  a  great  German  humanist.  He  was  placed 
in  the  monastery  of  Fulda  when  he  was  ten  years 
of  age,  but,  not  intending  to  be  an  ecclesiastic,  he 
escaped  from  this  institution  some  years  later.  He 
then  developed  himself  by  studying  the  humanities 
at  Frankfort  and  at  Pavia,  in  Italy.  In  15 13  he 
w'ent  into  the  army;  Maximilian  I.  crowned  him 
poet  in  15 17,  for  he  was  an  able  writer.  After  this, 
he  followed  the  career  of  a  soldier,  but  always  with 
the  highest  religious  principles.  He  was  keen  in 
satire;  he  was  also  a  friend  and  supporter  of 
Luther.  This  picture  is  the  strongest,  both  in  han- 
dling and  in  sentiment,  among  the  modern  pictures 
in  Dresden. 

Ludwig  Herterich  is  not  only  a  great  master 
himself,  but  he  is  a  wonderful  teacher,  having 
trained  the  perceptions  and  opened  the  eyes  of  many 
young  pupils.  His  lack  of  dim  speculation,  his 
direct  venturesome  spirit,  and  his  forceful  pictorial 
talent  have  won  him  a  high  place  among  modern 
realists  who  nevertheless  are  not  afraid  of  mental 
idealism. 

An  interesting  canvas  is  that  which  displays  a 


438    Zbc  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresden  (Balleri? 

group  of  Pilgrims  at  the  Tomb  of  St.  Elizabeth, 
by  Carl  Bentzer.  It  is  a  large  and  forceful  paint- 
ing, in  good  modern  spirit,  as  regards  its  technique, 
but  not  the  work  of  an  extremist.  Every  one 
knows  the  history  of  the  blessed  Elizabeth  of  Hun- 
gary, who  went  about  doing  good  so  effectually 
that  the  simple  folk  of  her  time  thought  her  art 
of  healing  was  miraculous.  How  readily  would  a 
trained  nurse  of  to-day  have  been  sainted  had  she 
appeared  unexplained  in  the  middle  ages!  Eliza- 
beth was  canonized  four  years  after  her  death,  and 
in  the  same  year  was  founded  the  great  church  in 
her  memory,  with  its  shrine,  which  was  visited  by 
so  many  pilgrims  like  these.  The  church  took 
forty-eight  years  in  building,  a  fine  specimen  of 
Gothic  architecture.  The  stone  steps  about  where 
the  shrine  used  to  stand  are  worn  quite  hollow  by 
the  knees  of  the  faithful.  It  was  a  popular  pil- 
grimage to  the  shrine  of  St.  Elizabeth  as  to  that 
of  St.  Thomas  of  Canterbury  in  England.  In  this 
picture,  a  pathetic  girl,  lying  too  ill  to  rise,  on  her 
pallet,  stretches  out  her  hand  to  touch  the  sacred 
tomb  (which  is  in  the  form  of  a  tablet  in  the  floor). 
Her  mother  is  bending  above  her,  watching  anx- 
iously to  see  if  any  change  shall  take  place  in  her 
condition.  An  old  man  has  laid  aside  his  crutch 
and  gone  on  his  knees  to  kiss  the  stone.     Candles 


/IDo^ern  (Berman  /iDastets  439 

burn  all  about ;  the  effect  of  these  little  dots  of  light 
is  extremely  good. 

Striking  and  dramatic  is  the  painting  by  Her- 
mann Prell  of  Judas  Iscariot  Bribed  by  the  Phari- 
sees. Hermann  Prell  is  one  of  the  leading  deco- 
rative painters  of  the  day,  and  not  only  that,  but 
whoever  will  go  from  the  gallery  in  Dresden  to  the 
Albertinum  will  realize  that  Prell  is  not  only  a 
painter,  but  an  architect  and  sculptor  of  the  first 
rank,  as  w^ell,  for  he  has  designed,  in  every  depart- 
ment of  the  three  sister  arts,  the  magnificent  stair- 
case in  that  building. 

Hermann  Prell  was  born  at  Leipsic  in  1854. 
Studying  both  in  Dresden  and  Berlin,  he  is  now  a 
professor  of  the  Dresden  Academy.  In  1886  he 
executed  this  masterly  painting,  so  replete  with 
thought  and  expression.  In  the  lonely  valley  stand 
three  men :  two  of  the  wily  Pharisees  and  Judas 
himself,  clothed  in  a  single  rough  garment  with 
a  rope  about  his  loins.  The  hesitation  in  his  face, 
the  gripping  hands,  suggesting  the  struggle  with 
temptation  to  greed,  the  fixed  beady  eyes  with  no 
deep  purpose  of  honour,  all  mark  him  as  doomed 
to  accept  the  bribe,  which  is  being  offered  by  the 
smug  hypocrites  at  his  side.  One  of  them  holds 
forth  the  alluring  coins  on  his  palm,  the  finger  and 
thumb  of  his  other  hand  still  bedded  in  his  wallet, 
reluctant  yet  willing  to  add  to  the  amount  if  neces- 


440     XTbe  Hrt  of  tbe  Dresden  (Ballerp 

sary.  The  other,  with  oily  persuasiveness,  lays  his 
loose-jointed  hand  on  the  arm  of  the  disciple. 
These  figures,  against  the  long  rolling  hill  back- 
ground, are  splendidly  conceived.  A  touch  of  the 
sentiment  so  well  expressed  by  Bocklin  appears  in 
the  background,  three  tiny  white  figures  in  the  dis- 
tance rounding  the  edge  of  a  white  wall  which  is 
topped  by  dark  foliage,  the  valley  behind  them  full 
of  sombre  tints.  Over  the  brow  of  a  craggy  hill 
on  the  right,  the  moon  is  just  beginning  to  rise, 
showing  silver  and  sharp  behind  the  black  ridge. 
The  whole  is  full  of  the  tragedy  of  betrayal,  — 
subtle,  forceful,  and  suggestive. 

Theodor  Hagen  is  the  disciple  of  individual  ex- 
pression. He  is  broad  and  progressive,  both  as 
painter  and  instructor.  Born  in  Diisseldorf,  and 
living  there  as  professor,  he  has  been  of  inestimable 
help  and  encouragement  to  many  young  artists. 
His  only  picture  here  is  No.  2380,  the  Little  Town 
of  Zons  on  the  Lower  Rhine. 

Stealthily,  and  with  a  soft  creeping  feline  mo- 
tion, the  lion  and  lioness  await  their  prey  in  the  pic- 
ture by  Richard  Friese,  called  Desert  Marauders. 
There  is  an  atmosphere  of  hush,  of  low-lying  an- 
ticipation, and  a  golden  glow  on  the  gray  of  the 
desert,  which  must  be  watched  for  a  few  minutes 
before  it  is  clearly  apprehended  in  its  full  signifi- 
cance. 


/IDo&ern  (Berman  /IDasters  441 

It  would  not  be  fair  to  pass  over  Gustav  Schon- 
leber's  Low  Tide  at  Flushing;  the  texture  is  very 
charming,  and  the  atmosphere  vapourous  and  trem- 
bling. 

The  graceful  figures  of  eight  girls,  by  Hans 
Makart,  in  a  picture  called  Summer,  attracts  our 
attention  in  the  thirty-eighth  room.  The  young 
women  with  two  children  are  diverting  themselves 
in  a  summer-house,  passing  the  time  in  listening 
to  the  plash  of  a  cooling  fountain  during  the  heat 
of  the  day.  Hans  Makart  was  born  in  1840  at 
Salzburg.  He  was  a  great  costumer  and  property 
man  in  his  art,  a  good  colourist,  in  fact,  the  first 
of  the  nineteenth-century  men  to  employ  strong 
decorative  schemes  in  the  popular  sense;  he  was 
theatrical,  he  set  splendid  scenes,  and  made  his 
people  up  in  true  enamelled  style,  their  complex- 
ions being  suggestive  of  the  use  of  the  customary 
greenroom  commodities,  while  their  shimmering 
hair  has  frequently  been  blondined  and  "  ondulee," 
and  shows  a  faithful  application  of  what  are  usually 
advertised  as  "  restorers." 

His  maidens  smile  like  advertisements  for  tooth- 
powder,  and  all  his  nymphs  must  have  learned  the 
value  of  the  Teutonic  equivalent  for  Pears'  Soap. 
Still,  although  all  these  qualities  may  be  distin- 
guished in  his  numerous  works,  it  must  also  be 
admitted  that  for  stage  setting,  make-up,  and  up- 


442     Zbc  Hrt  ot  tbe  Dresden  Galleti? 

holstery,  he  stands  supreme,  and  holds  a  unique 
position.  Makart  was  a  master  of  pageantry,  and 
he  was,  in  his  own  day,  a  pioneer  in  this  Hne,  for 
theatrical  effects  in  costume  and  properties  had  not 
yet  come  into  the  realm  of  German  art.  He  had 
so  many  tame  followers,  and  we  are  so  tired  of 
their  amiable  conceits,  that  we  are  liable  to  con- 
found the  master  with  the  pupils,  and  class  them 
all  together.  But,  in  his  way,  so  far  as  he  went, 
with  a  splendid  surface  masking  the  pasteboard, 
lathes,  and  nettings  of  his  intellectual  grasp,  he  is 
original  and  striking. 

Hans  Makart  was  a  property  man  in  private  life 
as  well.  He  was  a  famous  collector  of  antiques, 
from  Chinese  idols  to  Gobelin  tapestries,  from 
mediaeval  armour  to  Japanese  vases.  His  studio 
was  filled  with  brilliant  curiosities,  and  in  the  midst 
of  them  the  artist's  keen  black  eyes  roved  about 
and  made  selection  of  such  material  as  seemed  to 
him  suitable  to  embellish  his  gorgeous  productions 
on  canvas.  Makart  was  an  Academy  professor 
at  Vienna,  where  he  died  in  1884. 

After  a  survey  of  the  Dresden  Gallery,  one  is 
particularly  struck  with  the  opportunity  to  compare 
the  new  and  the  old,  —  the  quaint,  the  beautiful, 
and  the  progressive.  There  is  hardly  another  single 
gallery  which  has  so  large  a  collection  of  modern 
painters  added  to  its  possessions.     The  Gallery  is 


/l>oC>ern  German  /IDasters  443 

very  German  in  essentials,  but  it  is  also  typical  of 
the  broad  interests  and  vital  cosmopolitan  relations 
of  the  great  nation  in  which  it  has  its  local  hab- 
itation. 


THE    END. 


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Ricci,  Corrado.  —  Antonio  Allegri  da  Correggio. 

Rod,  E.  —  Nouvelles  fitudes. 

Rose,  G.  B.  —  Renaissance  Masters. 

RossETTi,  W.  M.  —  Guido  Reni. 

Solvay,  Lucian.  —  L'Art  Espagnol. 

Stanley,    George.  —  Painters    of    the    Dutch    and    Flemish 

Schools. 
Stearns.  —  Four  Great  Venetians. 
Stearns.  —  Midsummer  of  Italian  Art. 
Stevenson,  R.  A.  M.  —  Velasquez. 
Sturgis,  R.  —  Appreciation  of  Pictures. 
Symonds,  J.  A.  —  Renaissance  in  Italy. 

Symonds,  J.  A.  —  Sketches  and  Studies  in  Italy  and  Greece. 
Van  Rensselaer,  M.  S.  —  Six  Portraits. 
Vasari.  —  Lives  of  the  Painters. 
Walpole,  Horace.  —  Anecdotes  of  Painting. 
Weale,  Frances.  —  Hubert  and  Jan  Van  Eyck 
Wedmore,  F.  —  Masters  of  Genre  Painting. 
WiLKiNS,  W.  N.  —  Art  Impressions. 
Williamson,  G.  C.  —  Cities  of  Northern  Italy. 
Williamson,  G.  C.  —  The  Anomino. 
WoERMANN,  R.  W.  —  History  of  Painting. 
Woltmann,  Alfred.  —  Holbein  und  Seine  Zeit. 
Woltmann  and  Woermann.  — History  of  Painting, 


IFnbei 


About,  E.,  384. 

Achenbach,  A.,  381. 

Adam,  F.,  396. 

Aelst,  W.  von,  314. 

Affo,  26. 

Albani,  2;  Galatea,  82;  Cu- 
pids, 83,  427. 

Albani,  Cardinal,   173. 

Albert  of  Saxony,  414, 

Algarotti,  180. 

Angel,  P.,  338. 

Angel  ico,  Fra,  6. 

Anguisola,   S.,  280. 

Antonello  da  Messina,  25. 

Aretino,  Pietro,  26,  51,  53,  57. 

Atkinson,  Beavington,  371. 

Augustus  (Elector),  i,  2,  24, 
203. 

August  III.,  I,  4,  147,  149, 
168,  171,  178,  190. 

August  the  Strong,  i,  2,  148, 
190. 

Averscamp,  234. 

Bahr,  C,  414. 

Baldauf   (Mile.),   180. 

Balen,  H.  von,  231,  235,  277. 

Bantzer,  C,  438. 

Barbari,  J.  de',  44. 

Bassano,  60. 

Battoni,  P.,  187. 

Baum,  P.,  416. 

Bega,  C,  360. 

Belcamp,  247. 


Bellini,  G.,  380. 

Belotto,  see   Canaletto. 

Bendemann,  E.,  401. 

Berchem,  320,  326. 

Berenson,  B.,  41. 

Bevilacqua,  A.,   17. 

Biscaino,  B.,  83. 

Bismarck,  423. 

Bles,  H.,  229. 

Bios,  Carl,  416. 

Bocklin,    A.,    373,    383,    398, 

419,  429-436. 
Bode,   Dr.,  268. 
Bokelman,  C.  L.,  387. 
Bol,  R,  289,  295,  332. 
Bol,  H.,  201. 
Bonifazio,  59. 
Boons,   Vinck,   233. 
Bordone,  P.,  59. 
Botticelli,  5,  6;  Virgin,  6;  St. 

Zenobius,  7,  218,  419,  431. 
Bougnereau,  313. 
Bouveret,  D.,  421. 
Brandt,  I..  258,  264,  271. 
Bray,  S.  de,  241. 
Breu,  Jorg,  227. 
Bronzino,  A.,  230. 
Brouwer,    A.,    233,    244,    249, 

349.    386. 
Brueghel,  "  Hell,"  242,  243. 
Brueghel,  Peter,  230. 
Brueghel,  "  Velvet,"  231,  236, 

242,   250,   267,  277. 
Briihl,  Graf  von,  2. 


447 


448 


flnbex 


Brim,  C.  le,  141,  148. 
Bunsen,  370. 
Burger,  W.,  301. 

Cagnacci,  98. 
Calame,  A.,  404. 
Calvaert,   D.,  27. 
Calverley,   C.   S.,  320. 
Camerarius,  J.,  210. 
Canal,  A.,  188. 
Canaletto,  182,  188,  189. 
Cano,  A.,  1 19-123. 
Cantarini,  S.,  82. 
Capitana,  Donna  M.,  172. 
Capponi,  R.,  18. 
Caravaggio,  89,  114,  139,  397. 
Carducho,  V.,   113. 
Carleton,   Sir  D.,  267. 
Carlyle,  T.,  148-150,  155,  156, 

390. 
Carpi,  G.  da,  16,  30,  34. 
Carracci,  The,  3,  124. 
Carracci,  Agostino,  78. 
Carracci,  Anibale,  Fame,  75 ; 

Madonna,  76;  Lute  Player, 

"jG;  Christ,  TJ. 
Carracci,  Ludovico,  74. 
Carriera,     Rosalba,     164-175 ; 

Portrait    of    Herself,    165; 

Journal,    166;    Louis    XV., 

167;    Apollo    and    Daphne, 

169,  178. 
Castiglione,  B.,  91. 
Catacuzene,  Princess,  412. 
Catena,  V.,  54. 
Cavazzola,  17. 
Cervantes,  391. 
Channing,  Dr.,   359. 
Charles  I.,  247,  280,  283,  297. 
Charlies  V.,  47,  49. 
Chavannes,    P.   de,   408-413. 
Christian,    Elector,    178. 
Cignani,  C,  82,  176. 
Cima    da    Conegliano,    2,    lO, 

12. 
Claude     Lorrain.      137,     141- 

145;  Acis  and  Galatea,  144; 

Flight  into  Egypt,  144,  189. 


Clausen,  G.,  400. 

Clerk,  J.,  160. 

Clouet,  F.,  138. 

Codde,  P.,  335. 

Colonna,  V.,  412. 

Conca,  98. 

Constable,  401,  426. 

Cornells   van   Haarlem,  203. 

Cornelius,  P.  de,  366,  367, 
371- 

Correggio,  v,  3,  13-15;  Mag- 
dalen, 34-42;  Madonna  of 
St.  Francis,  34,  35,  40; 
Madonna  of  St.  Roch,  35; 
Holy  Night,  36;  Madonna 
of  St.  George,  38,  170,  173, 
261. 

Cosimo,  P.  de,  28. 

Cossa,  F.,  9,  II. 

Costa,  34,  35,  41. 

Courtois,  J.,  147. 

Cowley,  A.,  285. 

Cranach,  L.,  202,  226,  228. 

Cranach  the  Younger,  203, 
229. 

Credi,  L.  di,  7. 

Crespi,  G.  M.,  85. 

Crivelli,  9. 

Cuyp,  A.,  238. 

Dahl,  S.,  415. 

Damiani,  C.  F.,  4. 

Dante.  391. 

Darmstadt,  216,  220. 

David-Nillet,    G.,   420. 

Defregger,  F.,  384,  402. 

Delacroix.  276. 

Denner,  B.,   183. 

De  Piles,  339. 

"  Dialogos     de     la     Pintura," 

TI3- 

Dieffenbacher,    A.,    399. 
Diethe,  415. 
Dietrich,  C.,  184. 
Dietrichstein,  Count,  180. 
Diez,  W.,  386. 
Dill,  L.,  387. 
Dinglinger,  S.,  181. 


ITnbex 


449 


Dolci,   C,   40,   88,    185,   213, 

313- 
Domenichino,  ^^. 
Dossi,  Dosso,  3,  16,  30,  32. 
Dou,  Gerard,  2,  234,  289,  315, 

ZZ7>,     336-345 ;      "  Vanitas," 

2,ZT,     Hermit,     ZIT,     Self, 

337 ;      Violin-player,      339 ; 

Schoolmaster,      339,      345 ; 

Wine      Cellar,     341,      345; 

Rembrandt's    Mother,    344; 

Girl  Gathering  Grapes,  345 ; 

Doctor,  345. 
Dresden    Gallery,   v,    1-6,   TZ^ 

z^iz,  365. 

Duck,  J.,  360. 

Dudley,  Elarl  of,  130. 

Dughet,   G.,    139,   141. 

Diirer,  Albrecht,  47,  194,  206- 
214;  Dresden  Altar,  210; 
Crucifixion,  213;  Proces- 
sion to  Calvary,  214,  221, 
223,  230,  239,  369,  380,  386, 
390,  391,  420. 

Dutch  painters,  peculiarities 
of,  307-309- 

Eastlake,  Sir  C,   12. 
Eclectics,  The,  74,  89,  213. 
Eeckhout,  G.  Van,  289,  332. 
Eismann,  J.,  235. 
Eldin,  see  Qerk. 
Elizabeth,    Empress,    170. 
Elliger,  O.,  248. 
Elsheimer,  A.,  269. 
Erasmus,  215. 

Evelyn's  Diary,  289,  309,  342. 
Everdingen,  C.,  237,  326. 

Fabritius,  302. 
Feuerbach,  A.,  373,  430. 
Filarete,    195. 
Flinck,  G.,  289,  294. 
Floris,  see  Vriendt. 
Fontana,  L.,  85. 
Ford,  R.,  130,  132. 
Fortuny,  152,  393,  428. 


Fourment,  H.,  240,  257,  260, 

261,  272,  275,  276. 
Francesco  III.  of  Modena,  3, 

34- 
Francia,  F.,  23,  28,  40. 
Francia,  G.,  9. 
Franciabigio,   12. 
Francken,  F.,  231. 
Frederick    IV.    of    Denmark, 

173- 
Frederick  August  of  Saxony, 

414. 
Frederick  the  Great,  148,  149, 

388,  390,  393,  418. 
Friese,  R.,  440. 
Fromentin,   E.,  238,  256,  277, 

322,  329. 
Furich,  366. 
Furini,  F.,  91. 
Fyt,  J.,  297. 

Garofalo,  3,  26,  30;  Minerva 
and  Neptune,  32,  34;  St. 
Peter  and  St.  Bernard,  32; 
Venus  and  Mars,  ZZ  \  Vir- 
gin and   Saints,  ZZ- 

Gebhardt,  E.  von,  416. 

Gebler,  O.,  383. 

Gerard,  F.  B.,  407. 

George  of   Saxony,  414. 

Gessi,  F.,  87. 

Gey,  L.,  372. 

Geysels,    P.,    246. 

Gherardo,  see  Honthorst. 

Ghislandi,    Era  V.,  98. 

Giovannini,  C,  3. 

Girolamo  da  Sta.  Croce,  44. 

Giordano,  L.,  97. 

Giorgione,  2,  10;  Venus,  53, 
56,  171,  186. 

Goethe,   369,   389. 

Goncourt,  De.   153. 

Gongora,  L.   de,  72. 

Goya,  70,  136. 

Goyen,  Van,  346. 

Gozzolo,  B.,  6. 

Graff,  A..  182. 

Grahl  Collection,  iSl. 


450 


•ffubei 


Grethe,  C,  415. 

Greuze,  J.  B.,  157,  251. 

Gries,  365. 

Grififier,  J.,  232. 

Grimou,  A.,  149. 

Griitzner,  381. 

Gude,  H.,  404. 

Guercino,  78-81 ;  Semiramis, 
78;  St.  Francis,  78;  Adonis, 
78;  Painting  and  Drawing, 
78 ;  Silvio  and  Dorinda,  79 ; 
Venus  and  Adonis,  79; 
Cephalus  and  Procris,  79; 
Evangelists,  80,  81. 

Gurlitt,  L.,  401. 

Haagen,  T.,  440. 
Haensbergen,  J.  van,  314. 
Hahn-Hahn,  Mme.,  108. 
Hals,   F.,  234,   244,  310,  321- 

325,  349,  360,  408. 
Hals,  F.,  the  Younger,  323. 
Hamerton,   P.   G.,  421. 
Harrison,  A.,  428. 
Haug,  R.,  416. 
Heem,  C.  de,  248,  319. 
Heist,  Van  der,  241,  295,  296. 
Hendrickje,   286,   293. 
Hermann,  H.,  416. 
Herrara,    F.,    in,    126. 
Herterich,   L.,  436. 
Heyse,  P.,  398,  431. 
Hitchcock,  G.,  428. 
Hobbema,  M.,  326,  332. 
Hoff,  K.,  413. 
Hofmann,  J.  M.,  399. 
Hogarth,  310. 
Holbein,    H.,    v,    3,    15,    180, 

204;     Gonsalve,    205,     214- 

224;  Meyer  Madonna,  216; 

Morette,  222 ;  George  Gyze, 

222;    Jane     Seymour,    222, 

390,  392,  430. 
Hondecoeter,  M.,  359. 
Honthorst,  G.,  297. 
Hooch,   P.   de,   252,  301,  305, 

310,  386. 
Hood,  T.,  227. 


Hoogstraeten,  333. 
Houbraken,  327. 
Hiibner,  J.,  4,  54,  374. 
Hughtenburgh,   J.,    234. 
Hunt,  Wm.,   192. 
Hutten,   U.   von,  436. 
Huysum,  J.,  359. 

Innocent  X.,  135. 
Isabella,  Queen,   no. 
Ivan  the  Terrible,  414. 

Joinville,  Sire  de,  139. 
Jordan,  R.,  379. 
Jordaens,  H.,  233. 
Jordaens,  J.,  2,  88,  245,  298. 
Josephus,   ID. 
Juan  of  Austria,  251. 
Juanes,  J.  de,  137. 

Kalkreuth,  Count,  422. 
Kalmorgen,  415. 
Kauffman,  A.,  182. 
Kaulbach,  F.  A.,  386. 
Kerrincx,  A.,  234. 
Kessel,  J.  van,  248. 
Keyser,  T.  de,  331. 
Kiessling,   P.,  381. 
Klinger,  M.,  436. 
Knaus,  L.,  384. 
Kneller,  Sir  G.,  158. 
Knupfer,  N.,  335. 
Koninck,  P.,  289. 
Koninck,  S.,  296. 
Krohg,  C.,  421. 
Kuehl,  G.,  427. 
Kugelgen,   G.,  413. 
Kiigler,   109. 
Kummer,  R.,  378. 
Kuntz,   G.,  378,  417. 

Lairesse,  G.,  I45,  40i- 
Lancret,    N.,    151,    152,    154, 

188. 
Langiani,   P.,   60. 
Lao  coon,  364. 
La  Tour,  Q.  M.,  166-176. 


fn&ex 


451 


Leendertsz,  L.,  296. 

Lely,  Sir  P.,  283. 

Lemon,  M.,  284. 

Lenbach,    F.    von,    398,    422- 

425- 
Leo  XIIL,  424. 
Leopold  William,  251. 
Le  Page,  B.,  421. 
Lessing,  C.  F.,  400. 
Leyden,  L.  van,  231. 
Leypold,  C,  379. 
Liberi,  P.,  85. 
Liebermann,  M.,  418. 
Lieven,  J.,  360. 
Liotard,  J.  E.,  179. 
Lippi,  F.,  6,  8. 
London   National    Gallery,  7, 

21,    140,  251,  272. 
Longhetti,    176. 
Longhi,   188. 
Looten,  J.,  234. 
Lorrain,  see   Claude. 
Lo   Spada,  sec  Marascalco. 
Lotto,  L.,  56;   Madonna,  58; 

St.  Sebastian,  59,  186. 
Louis,  Saint,  139. 
Louis  XIV.,   247. 
Louis  XV.,    166-168. 
Ludwig  of  Bavaria,  368. 
Lunders,   G.,  234. 
Luther,   M.,  202,  437. 


Maes,  N.,  352. 

Magnasco,  187. 

Makart,  H.,  441. 

Mancini,  53. 

Manora,   127. 

Mantegna,  A.,  6,  il,  35. 

Marascalco,   186. 

Maratti,  C,  90. 

Mariette,  170,  172,  174. 

Master  of  Death  of  the  Vir- 
gin, 204. 

Master  of  Liesborn,  204. 

Master  of  Lyversberg  Pas- 
sion, 204. 

Matthai,  J.  R,  4. 


Maurice    de    Saxe,    155,    176, 

203. 
Max,  G.,  393. 
Maximilian,  437. 
Maxwell,  Stirling,  136. 
Mazzolini,   11. 
Medici,  M.  de,  270. 
Meissonnier,  335,  392,  393. 
Melchers,  G.,  429. 
Memlinc,  H.,   198,  200. 
Mengs,  L,  178,  179. 
Mengs,  R.,   14,   177,   183. 
Mengs,  T.  C.,  178. 
Menzel,  A.,  388-393,  418. 
Metastasio,   Abbe,    173. 
Metsu,  G.,  2,  354. 
Meulen,  Van  der,  247. 
Meyer,      Burgomaster,      215, 

216. 
Meyer,  C..  386. 
Michel,   E.,  269. 
Michelangelo,    22;    Leda,    27, 

50,    196,  239,   261,  368,  392, 

412. 
Mierevelt,  M.,  236. 
Mieris,   F.,  315,  342. 
Mieris,  W.,  316. 
Mignon,  A.,  319. 
Millet,  F.,  146. 
Minghetti,  M.,  422. 
Miniatures,  99,  164. 
Modena,   Princesses  of,  172. 
Monet,  C.,  416. 
Moore,  Dr.  J.,  273. 
Mor,  A.,  203,  204,  230,  299. 
Morales,  L.  de,  105. 
Morando,  17. 
More,  Sir  T.,  216,  219. 
Morelli,    6,    7,    9,    13-15,    41, 

299. 
Morland,  G.,  350. 
Moroni,  D.,  17. 
Morville,  Count  de,   171. 
]\rostaert,   J.,    203. 
}vIoya,   P.  de,   123. 
]\ruiler,  H.,  399. 
Miiller,  M.,  381. 
Munkacsy,  M.,  394-398,  426. 


452 


Unbcx 


Murillo,  E.,  V,  124,  125-131 ; 
Madonna  of  the  Napkin, 
128;  Two  Girls,  130;  St. 
Clara,   130;   Madonna,   131; 

St.  Rodriguez,  131,  309. 

Napoleon,  407. 
Nattier,  J.    M.,   155. 
"  Nazarenes,   The,"  366. 
Neer,  Van  der,  317. 
Netscher,  C,  317. 
Niebuhr,  370. 
Niobe,  364. 
Nogari,  G.,  187. 
Noort,  A.  van,  256. 

Ochtervelt,  J.,  361. 

Oer,  T.  von,  379. 

Olde,  H.,  422. 

Olivares,  Duke  of,   131,  132. 

Orbetto,  L',  90. 

Orley,  B.  van,  205. 

Orrente,  P.,  108. 

Ostade,  A.  van,  249,  346,  349- 
352;  The  Artist,  350; 
Habitues  of  an  Inn,  351 ; 
Two  Peasants,  351 ;  Peas- 
ants at  an   Inn,  351,  360. 

Ostade,  I.  van,  334. 

Oury,  J.  L.,  419. 

Overbeck,  366. 

Ovid,   151,  339. 

Pacheco,  106,  107,  129,  133, 
134,  186. 

Palma  Vecchio,  53 ;  Venus, 
55;  Three  Sisters,  56;  Vir- 
gin, 56;  Jacob  and  Rachel, 
56. 

Palomino,  106,  123,  195. 

Parmegiannino,  Judith,  16; 
Madonna  della  Rosa,  26; 
Cupid,   27. 

Passeri,  78. 

Pastel  as  an  art,  99,  163. 

Pater,  J.  B.  J.,  151,  152. 

Paudiss,  C,  237. 

Periera,  V.,  137,  185. 


Perugino,   P.,  29. 

Peschel,  C,  378. 

Pesne,  A.,  149. 

Pforr,  366. 

Philip  III.,  vi,  47,  107. 

Philip  IV.,  112,  118,  132,  134, 
240,    251,   276. 

Philip  the   Good,    194,   200. 

Piazetta,   190. 

Piloty,  387,  403. 

Pinturicchio,    8. 

Piombo,  S.  del,  27. 

Pirkheimer,  W.,  207. 

Pisseleu,  J.  de,   138. 

Poel,  Van  der,  336. 

Pohle,  L.,  414. 

Polenburgh,  C.  van,  314,  319. 

Ponte,   see    Bassano. 

Pordenone,    12. 

Pot,  H.,  360. 

Potter,  P.,  332,  422. 

Pourbus,  F.,  203. 

Poussin,  N.,  139;  Venus, 
140;  Adoration,  140;  Pan, 
140;  Narcissus,  140;  King- 
dom of  Flora,  140,  171. 

Prell,  H.,  439. 

Preller,  F.,  378. 

Preti,   M.,   98. 

Preuss  Collection,   181. 

Procaccini,  84. 

Raeburn,  Sir  H.,  159-162. 

Raphael,  v,  3,  5,  18-25;  Sis- 
tine  Madonna,  18,  23 ; 
Copies,  27,  41,  178,  218, 
320.  333,  368. 

Reitzenstein,  L.  C,  181. 

Rembrandt,  v,  98,  124,  226, 
232,  238,  242,  254,  286-294; 
Rembrandt  and  Saskia, 
286,  290 ;  Saskia,  287,  291 ; 
Ganymede,  288,  290;  Sacri- 
fice of  Manoah,  288,  291 ; 
Night  Watch,  290;  Burg- 
graef,  289;  Samson,  291; 
Bittern  Shooter,  291 ;  Old 
Woman     Weighing     Gold, 


Unbei 


453 


292;  Old  Man,  292;  Young 
Warrior,  292 ;  Entomb- 
ment, 292;  Self,  292;  Man 
with  Pearls,  293;  Death, 
293.  304,  332,  336,  353,  386, 
426. 

Reni,  Guide,  3,  38,  85; 
Venus,  86;  St.  Jerome, 
87;  Christ,  87;  "Bacchus, 
87,   124,  176,  213. 

Rethel,  372. 

Reynolds,  Sir  J.,  159,  241, 
322,    342,    361,    425. 

Ribalta,  J.   de,   112. 

Ribera,   see   Spagnoletto. 

Richter,  L.,  375. 

Ridolfi,  54,  64. 

Riedel,  J.  A.,  4. 

Riefstahl,  W.,  413. 

Rigaud,  H.,  147,  169. 

Rinaldo  of   Modena,  172. 

Ritscher,  378. 

Roberti,  E.,  11. 

Robusti,  see  Tintoretto. 

Roelas,  J.  de  las,  107,   118. 

Romano,  G.,  28. 

Roos,  J.  H.,  236. 

Roos,  P.  P.,  235. 

Rosa,  S.,  92-97,  124,  139.  147, 
187. 

Rose,  G.  B.,  15. 

Rotermund,  J.,  401. 

Roting,  ].,  414. 

Rottenhammer,  J.,  235. 

Roymerswale,  M.  von,  201. 

Rubens,  J.,  258. 

Rubens,  P.,  261. 

Rubens,  Peter  Paul,  v,  2,  3. 
27,  68,  88,  124,  171,  176, 
226,  232 ;  Woman  with 
Braids,  239;  Bishop,  239; 
Garden  of  Love,  240,  242 ; 
Judgment  of  Paris,  244, 
254,  255  -  277 ;  Drunken 
Hercules,  263 ;  Champion 
of  Virtue,  263 ;  Adoration 
of  Magi,  264;  Elevation 
and    Descent    from    Cross, 


265 ;  St.  Jerome,  265 ;  Lion 
Hunt,  266;  Portraits,  268; 
Boar  Hunt,  269;  Old 
Woman  with  Brazier,  269; 
Vulcan's  Forge,  269;  Ata- 
lanta,  273 ;  Diana,  274 ; 
Argus,  274;  Neptune,  274; 
Bacchante,  274;  Diana  and 
Nymphs,  275,  280,  281,  294, 
297. 

Ruskin,  J.,  145. 

Ruthven,   Mary,  284. 

Ruysch,  R.,  359. 

Ruysdael,  J.,  232,  325-331; 
Monastery,  327,  329;  Jew- 
ish Burial  Ground,  328; 
The  Ford.  328;  The  Chase, 
328;  Castle  Bentheim,  328; 
Waterfalls,   329. 

Ryckaert,  D.,  245. 

Saftleven,  H.,  314. 
Salvator,  see  Rosa. 
Sandrart,  338. 
Sarto,   A.   del,  3,    12,   29,    54, 

171. 
Sartori,  F.,  174,   176. 
Saskia,  286,  289. 
Sassoferrato,  40,   185. 
Savery,  R.,  231. 
Scanelli,  47. 
Scarsella,  I.,  16. 
Schalcken,  G.,  333. 
Schadow,  366. 
Schack,  Count,  431. 
Schiavone,  60. 

Schnorr,  J.,  4,  366,  367,  371. 
Schelling,   365. 
Schlegel,  A.  W.,  365. 
Schlegel,  W.,  365. 
Schonbroeck,    P.,    244. 
Schonfeldt,   H.,   235. 
Schonleber,  G.,  441. 
Schwartz,  C,  235. 
Schwind,  372. 
Scorcl,  J.,  203,  230. 
Seemann,  E.,  159. 
Seibold,  C,   184. 


454 


1[n&ex 


Seghers,  D.,  248. 

Shakespeare,  369,  407. 

Signorelli,    L.,   28. 

Silvestre,   L.  de,  148,   178. 

Skarbina,  F.,  417. 

Skreta,  C,  235. 

Slingelandt,   P.   C,  352. 

Snayers,  P.,  246. 

Snellincz,  277. 

Snyders,  300. 

Solimena,  87,   186. 

Solvay,   L.,    125. 

Spagnoletto,  no,  112,  113; 
St.  Bartholomew,  115; 
Diogenes,  116;  Peter  in 
Prison,  116;  St.  Law- 
rence, 117;  St.  Francis, 
117;  St.  Agnes,  117,  397- 

Spanish  art  galleries,  108. 

Spanish  legends,  100-105,  no. 

Sperling,  314. 

Spitzweg,  C,  382. 

Stearns,  F.  P.,   15,  25. 

Steen,  J.,  249,  310,  313,  315, 
335,  345-349;  Marriage  at 
Cana,  347 ;  Expulsion  of 
Hagar,  348;  Mother  and 
Child,  348. 

Steenwyck,  H.,  246. 

Steinle,  366. 

Strozzi,   B.,  83. 

Sturgis,  R.,  218. 

Subleyras,  P.,   154. 

Sustermans,  277. 

Swanenburch,  288. 

Symonds,  J.  A.,  42. 

Tacitus,  325,  349. 

Tamm,  F.,  235. 

Teniers,  D.,  2,  233,  246,  249- 
254;  Smokers  in  Inn,  249; 
Bleaching  Ground,  250; 
Inn  by  River,  250;  Com- 
pany of  Smokers,  251 ; 
Deliverance  of  St.  Peter, 
251 ;  Chalking  up  the 
Score,  252;  Page,  252; 
Alchemist,     252;     St.     An- 


thony, 253;  Himself,  253; 
Village   Fetes,  253,  386. 

Ter  Borch,  2,  310,  315,  318, 
354.  355-358;  Lady  in  her 
Room,  355 ;  Lady  Wash- 
ing her  Hands,  356;  Sol- 
diers, 356;  Lady  Playing 
Lute,  356;  Officer,  357. 

Thedy,  M.,  406. 

Theotocopuli,  71. 

Thoma,  H.,  419. 

Thore,  see  Burger. 

Tintoretto,  D.,  64. 

Tintoretto,  J.,  60-64;  Six 
Women  with  Musical  In- 
struments, 60;  Woman  and 
Dragon,  61 ;  Parnassus, 
62 ;  The  Rescue,  63 ;  Por- 
traits, 63 ;  Holy  Family, 
62,. 

Titian,  V,  3,  44-53;  Virgin 
and  Saints,  45 ;  Tribute 
Money,  45;  Portraits,  48; 
Holy  Family,  49;  Venus, 
so;  Man  with  Palm,  51, 
53,   54,   no,   n3,  431. 

Trivia,  A.,  85. 

Tura,  C,  9,   11,  26. 

Turchi,  A.,  90. 

Ubertini,  15. 
Uden,  L.  van,  246. 
Uhde,  F.  von,  425. 

Valdes,  Leal,  J.  de,  136. 

Valentin,  Le,    139. 

Van  Dyck,  v,  124,  241,  242, 
254,  267,  268,  277-285; 
Portraits,  278,  281,  282; 
Drunken  Silenus,  278;  St. 
Jerome,  279;  Old  Man, 
280;  Old  Woman,  280; 
Apostles,  241,  281 ;  Youth- 
ful Jesus,  281 ;  Com- 
mander in  Armour,  282. 

Van  Eyck,  Jan  and  Hubert, 
V,   191-198,  391. 

Van  Loo,  C,  297. 


•ffuDex 


455 


Varotari,  84. 

Vasari,  26,  184. 

Vautier,   B.,  384. 

Vega,  Lope  de,  103,  114,  151. 

Velasquez,  D.,  3,  13,  70,  109, 
no,  120,  124,  131-136;  Oli- 
vares,  31 ;  Philip  IV., 
132;  Portraits,  132;  Flesh 
Painting,  133,  265,  271, 
294,   392,   408. 

Velde,   Van   de,   232,  331. 

Veneto,  B.,  16. 

Veneziano,  P.,  12. 

Verendael,  N.,  248. 

Verkolje,  J.,  360. 

Vermeer  of  Delft,  18,  300- 
306;  Girl  and  Lover, 
302;  Lady  Reading  Letter, 
320,  344,  361,  386. 

Verocchio,  7. 

Veronese,  B.,  53,  60. 

Veronese,  P.,  3,  12,  46,  64- 
70 ;  Cuccina  Family,  65 ; 
Marriage  at  Cana,  64,  67; 
Christ  with  Cross,  68 ; 
Moses,  69;  Supper  at  Em- 
maus,  69;  Susannah,  70, 
171,  426. 

Victors,   J.,  289. 

Vinci,  L.  da,  7,  8,  16,  35,  209, 
2,2,2,. 

Viti.  T.,  41. 

Vlieger,  S.  de,  317. 

Vogel,  C,  183,  414. 

Vois,  A.  de,  334. 


Voltaire,   149,  39O. 
Vonck,  J.,  327. 
Vos,  P.  de,  300. 
Vouet,  S.,  138. 
Vriendt,  F.  de,  239. 

Wael,  J.,  277. 

Walpole,    H.,    153,    158,    189, 

219,  247,  276,  320. 
Watteau,      A.,      150;      Love 

Feast,    151 ;    Garden    Party, 

152,   154,  168,  188,  240. 
Weenix,  J.,  299. 
Wehme,  Z.,  204. 
Weiser,  J.,  386. 
Werff,  Van  der,  13,  313. 
Weyden,  R.  van  der,  9,   195, 

198. 
Whistler,  273. 
Wilkie,  D.,  124,  130,  153,  349, 

360. 
Wilkins,  W.   N.,  185,  227. 
William  IIL,  318. 
Wittenburg,  202,  217. 
Woermann,  C,  4. 
Wohlgemut,  M.,  206. 
Wolfvoet,  v.,  233. 
Wouwermans,      2,      310-312, 

331- 
Wynants,  J.,  312,  331. 

Zimmermann,  E.,  393. 
Zuccaro,   109. 
Zurbaran,  F.,  118. 


UC  SOUTHERN  REGIONAL  LIBRARY  FACILITY 


A     000  055  737     i 


